Kemushi-chan, you’re such a role model for me. It means so much to see a fellow black woman studying Japanese, especially when lot of people in my hometown ridicule me for picking it. But I’m determined. I want to achieve your level of fluency and confidence someday.
When I was younger I definitely....confused some people haha. That being said, it suddenly "made sense" when I had a marketable, unique skill to use during job-hunting. No matter what the skill, a usable skill in life or work will set you a part, eventually for the better. :) Wishing you all the best!
you need to move. i live in minneapolis and there are many black people studying japanese. you will find a support system among us and many of us are advanced level and beyond. keep working at it 応援していますよ！
FELLOW STUDENTS! I wanted to reiterate here that even though I collected my brightest moments into one sound bite, I understand personally how frustrating it can be to feel that another person's opportunities could never be a reality for yourself. Education/scholarships are a tremendous blessing, and it often makes me angry/sad when I remember how hard it was to pay for basic expenses, or how many students simply didn't have access to the basic things I might take for granted. It's not that I was just "lucky" in life, but that someone actually took the initiative to create these opportunities for students after them. One of my biggest goals right now is to do the same, and begin CREATING the types of chances that helped bring me to where I am today. I hope in the comments we can discuss not only our goals, but also the struggles that need to be addressed. Tuition? School books / laptop fees? Living Costs? More programs? Please let me hear your voice and experience in a comment below. Thank you for watching today and I can't wait to hear more about you.
KemushiChan ロレッタ I'm studying abroad in Tokyo for the next year and I'm SO incredibly thankful for scholarship support. Have been wondering if a 電子辞書 would be a worthwhile purchase. Have you used one in your studies? And would you recommend them to intermediate/advanced learners of Japanese?
Hello, KemushiChan ロレッタ ! My name is Kelsey (my fiance, Evan, and I share a RUclips account, sorry for any confusion. Haha)! I was also interested in Japanese culture when I was young, but Japanese wasn't taught at any of my schools growing up. The language I learned in high school for mandatory credit was not a language I had any connection to, nor was I inspired to learn any more of it after I graduated. I can't imagine how amazing it would have been to have the opportunity to start learning Japanese at a young age! I'm 25 now and I honestly think about this all the time because I'm currently trying to start learning Japanese seriously, but I don't know where best to start learning and I'm very financially limited. But, after watching your video about the MEXT scholarship for research students through embassy recommendation I got really excited! I feel like this would be such an amazing opportunity to finally act on my interests and learn in japan with a goal in mind. Would you be willing to give me some MEXT advice? Applications are open for a month, and I'm trying to find a Japanese university that has an english taught MBA program. Are you enrolled in an english taught program, or were you able to be enrolled in a Japanese taught program because your Japanese is so advanced? I like Sophia University, but I'm reading that it is a highly saught-after private university, so I'm hoping for some suggestions of some other universities which offer english taught MBA programs that may be more attainable to me/ look more financially probable in the eyes of MEXT. Which ones did you come across in your search for a university when you were first applying? I'm looking through faculty at a few different universities trying to find a professor that specializes in something I can get excited about so I may build my research proposal to best take advantage of their expertise. How did you find a professor to be your mentor through your studies? Did you have a specific area of study in mind before choosing someone, or did you find someone you liked and build off of their interests? Thank you so much for reading this all the way to the end (TaylorB reference lol)! Any advice you'd be willing to give would be so extremely appreciated! Thank you so much for this video, and I look forward to your next video of you, Boomer, and Lily! 😁
KemushiChan ロレッタ i was motivated to your video thank you bcoz of that i'm really have to study more harder but with the heart, bcoz I'm also dream to live or work in japan for my family and also reach what i wanted in life. Thank you for sharing all you been through in your life. It was really a good start for me to be inspired and motivated in to your words.
This is a very interesting topic. I supported the petition. Here's why: I had Japanese language course in middle school in Maryland. I would have continued Japanese language courses in high school, but I ended up moving to a different state where there were no Japanese language courses taught at all. Even though I originally got into Japanese "anything" through anime as a kid, it was my middle school language teacher who truly introduced me Japanese culture. He actually traveled to Japan sometime before the semester and saw how Japanese people lived. So, he worked with local people to build a mock set of a typical Japanese home at school and we got to go to it once a week and practice living as a Japanese person for class. This included taking off shoes before stepping onto the Tatami mats, rolling up the futon and putting it away, learning where clothes are put away versus using a dresser in the US, and sitting with a kotatsu to learn the difference between staying warm at home in winter versus how its done in the US among other things. I will never forget that experience. In fact, the teacher's mock Japanese home garnered enough attention to be put into an official museum! Experiences like this is why I signed the petition. If schools take out Japanese language, then the opportunity to teach students about Japanese culture dwindles down to a brief mention in a textbook. I know, because the high school I went to after moving did exactly that for its social studies course. Thank you for sharing the video and here's to your continues success and the success of the petition!
Your videos remind me of when I was learning Japanese growing up. I remember the first word I ever learnt was すし when I took part in a fundamentals class during a high school open day. I spent so much time burning that word into my reading and writing memory, as well as a few other katakana and Kanji I learnt on the day. I fell in love with the sound of J-Pop and it evolved into becoming enamoured with Japanese culture. Luckily, my high school offered Japanese studies from 7th to 12th grade at the time, so I was able to take it every year possible at the highest level I was permitted. I was blessed to have the opportunity to go on a heavily subsidised exhange for a couple of weeks in high school, and it was one of the best experiences of my life. Living in another country at a young age really changes your perspective on the world. It wouldn't have happened if I wasn't able to demonstrate how passionate I was about Japanese language and culture since year 7. University made studying Japanese beyond high school near impossible for me because there weren't joint programs with the core profession I wanted to pursue. Though, I can't seem to completely forget my Japanese and can still hold some very basic conversations. It even helped me develop some professional relationships with others who felt more comfortable speaking Japanese down the line. I'm pretty sure they are phasing out language studies in schools here in Australia, too. I wish they were respected more, as they can spark new passion in and create opportunities for nearly any student. Hopefully this video helps to raise awareness for that! Thanks for your videos, Loretta! ありがとうございます！
I guess Im asking the wrong place but does anybody know a way to get back into an Instagram account? I was dumb lost the password. I love any tricks you can give me.
I love your attitude. Yes, Japanese is a tough language to learn. And by working at it, I can learn it. Your bright, cheerful energy has helped bring you along.
Loretta, I just wanted to thank you so much for inspiring me over and over again. I am currently 18 years old and I've been learning Japanese for about 3.5 years now, but I feel like I still suck. For the first 3 years I only had classes once a week for an hour, and even now, I don't have the time to study Japanese all that much. I have classes two times a week now, but they are such a low level that I feel like I don't even improve at all. So, after all these years, I still feel like I'm stuck at the "absolute beginner" level. But watching your videos, especially this one, I feel *so* motivated to start working harder. Being able to speak Japanese at least somewhat well is one of my biggest goals for my life, and now I finally feel inspired to study, and study hard. This video seems like that last push to take me over the edge, and honestly? I can't even wait to start working on my grammar, my vocabulary and my kanji. I might not have the same opportunities you have - I couldn't study Japanese a lot at high school and I can't study it all that well at uni, either - but I want to make the best out of what opportunities I have. And maybe, in a few years, I'll watch this video again, look back at where I was now and wonder why I ever struggled with Japanese. Whatever will come, I want to thank you for inspiring me - us, with every video you make, for being so honest and wonderful and for just being you. Lots and lots of love from Germany & いつもありがとうございます ♡
as another fellow studying Japanese by self, try communicating with Japan People for learning a vast vocabulary i usually visiting a web Showroom-live where Japanese people broadcasting live from amateur to idol even tough i'm still got a little help from google translate :p
Thank you so much for the warm, sweet comment! Funny enough, seeing everyone else get motivated here in the comments is having the same reverse effect on me again. I really do hope your dreams take you far, and that along the way it's an amazing journey.
classes once a week in anything is going to cause a lot of regression. It's very inefficient. I have studied languages since i was 11 and daily exposure is key even if it is just music or a magazine article, etc.
Even if you don't ever get to a super fluent level in Japanese, don't worry too much about it. As long as you know basic Japanese, visiting Japan at the very least isn't a big challenge. There's a RUclips channel (Abroad in Japan), and the host first moved to Japan without much knowledge of Japanese at all. He can now speak fairly fluent Japanese (Mostly due to immersion), but when he first started he didn't know much. He managed to make it through that, because (Surprisingly to some people) many Japanese people can understand enough English to be able to understand you if you need to use it.
I'm 12 and learning it I use basic apps like duolingo and books and self studying but I understand with you mean with the time thing since time t gets in my way so although it may be difficul I believe with enough practice you'll get it 💖
ロレッタさん、hey!!! I'm Japanese American, born in the states and full Japanese blood. Your story is so inspiring and I shared this with my Mom, and I aspire to be someone like you. Also, this made me appreciate being able to speak both English and Japanese. My high school doesn't have a Japanese class, and you video made me realize how important broadening your language is. I am interested in attending college in Japan and working there in the entertainment world! This year (thankfully) I was chosen to study abroad at a university for half the year :) Just wanted to say Thank you for making this vid
Absolutely lovwd this! Thanks for sharing your journey. I've been learning Japanese independently for a number of years now on and off. In the past I'd get surges of demotivation because nobody understands why I'm interested in learning Japanese. For me it's nothing to do with Anime or Manga. I've always been into learning another language and what makes Japanese stand out out for me is how logical it is and how different it is from my own. As well as the Japanese culture.
Hey Loretta! It was so nice of you to let us go through this throwback, I absolutely loved getting to know your story. I actually could relate a lot because I'm Brazilian and I've spoken English as a second language for around 9 years, forever thankful for being grated a few scholarships and opportunities, specially throughout my time in high school, that would eventually change my destiny and lead me to where I am today. I've been an ESL Teacher for 3 years and studying Japanese for 7 years now, my goal is to preach the Gospel in Japan and teach there as well!
日本語字幕もつけましたのでCCボタンをクリックするとご覧いただけます！ I added Japanese & English subtitles, but if any of you would like to add another language here's the link! I am so grateful to everyone of you who supports my channel and helps with subtitles. THANK YOU! ruclips.net/user/timedtext_video?ref=share&v=2PGgeIh18_A
Omg, I lived in VA as well and went to Fairfax Coounty school. I'm currently trying to teach myself Japanese, do you have any personal tips on easy ways of learning it? Tysm💖
Omg, I lived in VA as well and went to Fairfax Coounty school. I'm currently trying to teach myself Japanese, do you have any personal tips on easy ways of learning it? Tysm💖
Can you break the Japanese bit by bit in the English Translation next time, please?? For example: Niku (Meat) bakari (Only) taberu to (If Fat) hutoru (To Grow Fat) yo (Stating a strong conviction or to convey). God will BLESS you.
I'm planning on studying Japanese and Korean (my second language) in college, but unfortunately my high school didn't support Japanese classes, so I'll be starting next year as a freshman in college. I've managed to teach myself hiragana/katakana and some basic kanji already which I hope will give me a little bit of an advantage. Also, anime has taught me a few words (more or less). I do hope that I can one day study abroad like you do. ❤
Korean and Japanese grammar are very similar :) Once you learn one of them, it should come easy for the other. Good luck though my friend! I’ll hope to continue my Korean soon after learning French and Spanish
Your story really surprised me because I also live in Virginia and am only a few hours away from William and Mary! After I graduated high school, I attended my local community college for almost two years before depression hit. I experienced a major identity crisis and didn't know who I was anymore. I isolated myself from society for another two years, and that brings us to today. My depression is not nearly as bad as it once was, which is great! But in a way I still feel as though I'm stuck. I've been separated from society for so long that I'm not sure how to ease my way back into it. I'm not sure if I should go back to college or not because I'm fearful my depression will come back if I do. This coming July I will be attending my first ever missions trip with my church to Southeast Asia; and while I'm super excited to be going somewhere new, Japan is where my heart is. I have always dreamed of going there but have yet to find an opportunity. Over the years I've tried to teach myself Japanese, but you can only go so far by yourself. 😅 Sorry this comment is all over the place, and it sounds super depressing, 😂 I just decided to open up my heart a bit because this video really inspired me! I know that one day I'll get better! I'm hoping that this upcoming missions trip will open new doors for me to try new things and learn more about myself! Thank you for sharing this video with us! And also thank you if you've actually read all of this! I hope you keep up this great content! 🤗
dont give yourselves limits .the mind is very powerful and only listens to what "YOU" tell it. im a selftaught japanese student with 3 years studying by myself with last year being fortunate enough getting a japanese girlfriend and she boosted my ablity while already being "FLUENT" enough to communicate with her while self studying and even way before metting her you can go very far by yourself ive been studying japanese bymyself for 4 years and the fact my gf can understand me is an accomplishment
Chelsey Fudd I’m actually really amazed to come across a comment like this, as I feel in a very similar situation to you. I am 24 now, but dropped out of college at 20 due to severe depression and agoraphobia. Since then, I’ve only had a few odd jobs that don’t last, and due to my struggles with mental illness, I isolated myself from friends and family and society as a whole. I’m currently in that ‘stuck’ phase too, of trying to get ahold of my life again, and start building my career and social life again. I know this is long, but I just wanted to let you know you’re not alone in this situation! I was really happy to read about you going on a mission trip across the world, that is really inspiring to me. :) I’d also love to visit Japan one day, and I know that eventually I will, it’s just a matter of getting back on my feet again. Anyways, I just wanted to reach out and wish you best of luck on your trip! Take care of yourself.
Thank you for your kind words! It's so encouraging to be reminded that I'm not alone during this challenging time of my life, and that there are also others in similar situations as me. I pray that an opportunity will arise for you to travel and try something new as well! Maybe not even necessarily across the world, maybe even somewhere in your own community! Somewhere new and exciting that will give you a refreshed sense of purpose and inspire you to push forward! Thank you again for your kind response! I'm glad to know we're not alone! :)
Wonderful inspiration! Such hard work paid off! If I may leave a message for those of us that are older but still interested in Japan or any other language/culture. It's NEVER too late to get started! While opportunities and experiences may vary, I do believe you can still experience great things by pursuing your interests and/or goals. I'm going to Japan for the first time this month and I've been out of college for a decade lol. But I have such a passion for Japan that I will still pursue it despite being in my 30's. So everyone let's do our best!!!
Wow, my school only has Spanish now that French was dropped from it last year😕. I'm into Japanese largely because I like how articulated it sounds😅, it's cool to see how you picked it up. And you're so fluent too🤗😱
Thank you for being transparent. I get afraid sometimes because I feel like I started too late. I'm going on 29 and started off and on 4 years ago. I've been consistent over the past year and a half. I wonder if I'll ever have the opportunity to use Japanese. I'm still going though. I've come too far to stop.
Don't give up! You've already put 4 years of had work into learning the language, best to continue and once an opportunity presents it self you can seize it ^^
It's never too late. Sure the best time to learn something was 10 years ago but the second best time is right now. Push yourself, dedicate your free time to practice and immerse yourself in the language and culture as much as you can. I'm knocking on 28 and I've only just started learning. I just focus on one small thing at a time and master it before moving on. I'm gonna get there eventually, mark my words! Enough chit chat though, time to study 😎
I started at 33 I'm 35 now. I feel you i feel like its too late for me but honestly i don't give a damn it will work out somehow as long as I put in the work to learn the language. I am completely self studying so far. And I put in a lot effort and time. For me though its more like going to japan as an artist or going with an intra-company transfer in my current company and hoping i can get by with work experience vs a college degree bc i do not have one but in recent yrs that is becoming a little more lax that work experience in a feel can equate to a college degree.
@@SyrianSoaper I'm with you there. I'm 33 now and finally learning the language that I wish I would've or could've started 10+ years ago. We can do this!
I am 32. Native English and Spanish speaker from America. Been obsessed daily with learning and mastering the Japanese language. It’s so intriguing to me I can’t let it go. I’ve been researching and studying Japanese now for the last 5 weeks. I have a goal to master it no matter how long it takes me. Eventually goal is to pass the JLPT-N1 at some point in life. How ever, can it take me somewhere at a older age (say by the time I’m in my 40s) i master the language. i am dedicating time and some money and looking into going abroad (which costs too). Will it be a waste going into at a older age for further potential possibilities or will I be too old by the time I master it to do anything with it? Either way, I am doing this for the my own fun and I’m extremely enjoying this challenge. I’m passionate about it no matter where it takes me I want to be able to speak fluent Japanese without having to think much about it. That’s my main goal. But would be better if the goal pays off somehow?. I guess that’s a hard questions to answer but would appreciate some your thoughts/inputs/advice. Thanks! Keep up the great videos!
Loretta!! I sent you that tweet asking you to sign the petition,,,, this video means so much to us all in NoVA & JASWDC! Thanks for including a link to the petition in the description! (Also, I'm studying Japanese because I want to start exchange programs between Japanese universities and HBCUs, among other things! I've been feeling like things are hopeless and I'm wandering aimlessly, but this video inspired me to keep working! The biggest hindrance isn't exactly a lack of resources, it's a lack of KNOWLEDGE regarding what resources are available; a lack of a cohesive community of Japanese learners and expats [I've found a strong anti-beginner and anti-helping/exasperated sentiment among most higher level speakers and expatriates who have lived in Japan for a long time]; and finally, there isn't a big push for Japan-America cultural exchange anymore. In Virginia, DC, and Maryland, we see a HUGE focus on modern and popular Latino, Ethiopian, and Korean culture, however, outside of the Cherry Blossom Festival, there isn't that same sense of openness with regards to Japanese culture.)
mniy425 I want to thank you for bringing the issue into attention and forwarding it to Loretta. I also want to ask you if you can elaborate, when you state that you are seeing a pushback from expat in Japan. Are you saying they are not willing to let others learn beginning Japanese ? Or there not interested in the whole Japan’ and US exchanged program ? I’m sorry for the questions, I was just confuse on that assertion that expat are not willing to let other learn the language .
Paine Mcphee A lot of ex-pats have an aura of, "everyone who is new is embarrassing and annoying". From the Tofugu podcasters to the RUclipsr Dogen, I see so many people assuming a.) Anyone starting to be interested in Japan is probably a weeb and are all embarrassing by virtue of being new, b.) People beginning to have interest in Japan or who haven't traveled there yet aren't putting enough time into researching things for themselves or are asking to be coddled ("stop asking me xyz, Google it!" As a teacher, answers like that really grinds my gears. My kids ask the same questions over and over, so I show them how to answer questions on their own and make those resources easily available to them! Or sometimes they really did do their best, they're just stuck on something I can help with!), and c.) If you teach English in Japan you're lesser than other people and deserve to be shamed for it. (I teach English as a second language in America, and I really don't get why ESL in a different country should be regarded any differently?? Teaching is something people go to school for and have to be certified to do...) There's also this weird sentiment that if you don't completely assimilate to Japanese culture, you're being a bad/embarrassing representative of your country. As a WOC that REALLY upsets me. We acknowledge that forcing immigrants to reject their culture and completely assimilate to American culture is racist and horrible, but people measure how successful you are in Japan by how assimilated you are. If you're bitter and blend in entirely, then you're seen as "good"; if you're still excited and optimistic and stand out in any way (still can't speak the language well, make little cultural faux pas, etc.) you're seen as embarrassing or bad. Who does that judgement affect the most? People new to life in Japan, or those in the beginner stages of learning Japanese. When I was in an immersion program, upper level students constantly ostracized the lower level students! They easily lost patience with them when a few brave souls tried to start a conversation, and constantly made comments about how bad they were and how they should be embarrassed. My teachers applauded how I "took the time to speak with the lower students", as if we weren't all beginners at some point and everyone deserved to be treated with respect... I see a LOT of long-time nonnative Japanese speakers and long-term expats cop the same attitude and exclude new people, favoring to only be with those who have the same level of skill or experience, and judging those who don't. It's disheartening!!
私もDCエリア（メリーランド）出身です！ロレッタさんの経験、なぜ日本語勉強し続いている理由をシェアしてくれてありがとうございました。It makes me feel very special to hear the success stories of someone from the same area as I am. I stumbled upon this video a bit late, but I'm so glad I found your channel! I hope you know you're a huge role model for students, especially from the DC area. Maybe someday we'll meet in Japan! 本当にありがとうございました！
I am older, and starting from square one with learning Japanese. I remember watching your video “ I am going to Japan” right after I had just returned from a 90day trip to Japan. I recall how fluent you sounded speaking Japanese on that video, and hoped one day I would sound like that. Well fast forward and you are beyond fluent, and I just started learning to read and write hiragana & katakana. This is going to be a long journey.
You must have studied hard. Your pronunciation and language skills spot on. My husband and I translate Japanese to English for a living and I taught English near Osaka. I love hearing people honing their skills and sharing experiences like this.
Loretta, thank you so much! I honestly really appreciate all that you are doing, as well as what you are trying to do. Although you may or may not see this, I would like to put this out there! I feel that because you've put yourself out there, you deserve to know a bit about me, even if I don't have much to offer! My name is Veronica. I'm 14 years old, and turning 15 later this month. I'm feeling anxious about my future and my plans, like many others. I'm scared that what I believe is my passion, is actually just me overexaggerating my feelings. I'm not sure about many things, but I am sure that you've inspired me a lot! Thank you so much for all the messages you share with us, especially this one! I have a big, big problem with procrastination, like many others. But! My Mum agreed that if I prove that I can overcome that, I can attend a Japanese school every Monday after school. It's a school that teaches with immersion! I learnt French that exact same way since grade 1 until now, but I still can't help but feel nervous. What if I don't get it? What if I embarass myself over and over again? Should I go for a different school? Should I not try at all? Because of this video, I will try my absolute best!! I believe (albeit with some doubt) that I won't regret studying Japanese as much as I can, so that one day I can do what I love. Ah, I have so many other things I would love to say!! But I'm sorry for writing so much already. ^^; I hope you're having an amazing day/night, and I wish you as much good luck as I can with whatever you need luck with! For anyone else reading this, thank you for even taking the time to read through this, and I sincerely hope you all have good luck as well!
This is so inspiring I’m 13 and I want to study Japanese while I’m studying French in school (I know it’s a bit much) but I really want to and this video helped give another little push of motivation. ❤️
Self studying Japanese a little over a year I hope to learn how the Music Industry in Japan works & someday break the language barrier. I have a BA in Music but I know I can get better work experience which has been a journey. I’m still thinking on Grad school & would like to possibly take Japanese classes to more motivation to grow & learn
I would say if you do make it here for grad school, try to find a way to work in a case study/interview with Sony Music/entertainment and you maybe able to wiggle your way into th industry a lot easier that way. Job hunting is rough, but if you're student a lot of companies are open to interviews and such, which makes it easier to connect and network.
Wow Loretta, this video was so inspiring. Your words were so moving and eye-opening. It really puts my opportunities or the “chances” I have had in perspective and made me realize how lucky I have been. I grew up in a naval base in Japan and as a child, I was taught to read, write, and speak Japanese, and Japanese culture and customs due to the strained and hostile relationship between the US and Japan during the 90s. I have always had an easy time speaking Japanese or learning new languages because I was exposed to multiple languages when I was young, but unfortunately I didn’t keep up with my studies. I am able to get around rural Japan with my broken Japanese and manage small talk but not graduate level Japanese. I was two courses away from completing a Japanese minor during my undergraduate. I have dictionaries and books but I never got around to actually studying. Watching this video helped me remember how I felt when I was learning and speaking Japanese for the first time. It helped me remember me as a little kid watching Japanese cable and singing along to the opening themes of Japanese children shows by reading the hiragana at the bottom. Thank you for reminding me of those memories! You’re amazing, keep up the good work!
Although I did not go through formal education when I was young, like you, Loretta, I developed an interest in studying Japanese (by self-study) even if I didn’t know yet what to do with it. Cut the long story short, opportunities really did present themselves later on and now I work here in Japan as an engineer. And even though I’m miles away from your level now, knowing that we share similar backgrounds (rigorous nihongo trainings, used it in workplace) inspires me to aim higher and keep on nurturing this skill. Thank you for sharing your story. ❤️
Loretta, thank you for this inspiring video and letting us get to know your history! I've been very interested in learning Japanese for years now, but always put it off because I thought I didn't have access to learning opportunities and I knew I couldn't get very far just through self-study. But last summer, I finally started taking Japanese classes at a "Japanese School" that's hosted at a local Middle School on Saturdays. While most of the classes and events are for children, they also have adults-only Japanese Language classes starting with the very basics and continuing on for 5 years of increasing studies. This class has been life changing in what I thought was possible for me because I'm already 6 years post-college graduation. I've taken volunteer opportunities with the group that runs the school, as well as other Japanese groups in the area, and because of them I recently found out about an all-ages study abroad program in Japan! I'm not only working towards lining everything up to spend a month or two studying in this program, but I'm also going to apply to JET this fall! I'm very excited to see where it all leads me next. Getting past the fear of it being "too late" or "not enough" or "impossible", starting to learn a language I've always wanted to, and getting involved in my local Japanese community have all opened so many doors for me already. For anyone out there with similar dreams and fears, please go after them! It's never too late to start trying, and if you already know you want to start then the best time to start is NOW!! :]
Growing up in very impoverished Northeastern NC, I never had access to Japanese classes. We were lucky to have Spanish once a week in high school! But I knew I was super interested in languages so I chose to study French for the first time once I got to college-now I’m fluent in French, Portuguese, and working on learning Japanese! It’s crazy to look back and reflect on it. Very inspiring, Kemushi chan
This was such a wild video for me. I’m black and also from Virginia. I’ve always had a love for languages and other cultures. It was also wild to hear you grew up near Fairfax/Arlington cause I’m currently at GMU taking Japanese as one of my classes. I’ve heard GMU has a great study abroad program so I hope to take a semester at a university in Japan. Thank you so much for the video :)
Love all of this! I've been an on off language learner for most of my life. I did German for a bit, Spanish in high school, Chinese at some point, etc etc, but didn't really stick with any of them. I'm committed to Japanese now, as an adult, but I always wish I had been able to stick with language study consistently from much earlier in life. Knowing another language opens up entire worlds for anyone willing to put in the work! I moved to Japan recently, and am already seeing improvements in my Japanese abilities, so I'm def looking forward to seeing how much progress I can make. Thanks for all of your videos and the work you put into them. You def inspire me to keep focusing on my studies! :-)
I stumbled across your channel today and I wanted to say thank you for inspiring me and others who want to learn Japanese. I hope that those schools in Virginia kept their Japanese programs on board. Classroom language learning experiences are so underrated, especially from passionate teachers who work hard to make learning fun and immersive for the students. I took Spanish in high school and college, and I really gained a lot from those experiences. I knew their all-Spanish speaking only classes were working when I started thinking in Spanish! I am a self-study Japanese learner. I struggle with the speaking part since I don't have as many well-structured opportunities to talk in Japanese outside of video calling like iTalki and Tandem. Contrasting it with my Spanish-learning experiences, I realized what a blessing it was to have a group of people who knew just about the same amount of the language as me to practice with. Anyway, because I can practice my listening through watching your channel, you just now earned a sub who is bent on watching without subs. Haha. To answer your question, my goals for beginning three months ago were four-fold. 1) I wanted to learn Japanese with my boyfriend who is 1/4 Japanese so we could visit his aunt and cousins there, and not need so much assistance to get around more rural areas. He decided to wait longer since work is stressful for him now, but I will eventually get him on board. 2) I just turned 30 and I want to prove to myself that it's not too late to start something new. 3) I was stuck in quarantine due to Covid, so I thought what a better way to explore the outside world right now than to learn a whole new language and culture? 4) Anime :)
Loretta, I just found this video and this is amazingly encouraging. We are around the same age and I'm also a Virginia girl (though I'm from southern VA).That is exciting and so relatable because it's rare to find other black women here who are into Japanese like I am. I actually worked at W&M for a year and learned a little Chinese there but I had no idea they taught Japanese there! That's so exciting. I've been lazily studying Japanese on and off for about 15 years and I first came to it from anime but im in love with the culture of Japan. I speak German at an upper beginner level already but this is the encouragement I needed to buck up my japanese! Thanks!
I am all amazed at how you worded this. It definitely shows your passion, and i personally think that your story is very inspiring. I agree with you 100%. I wish I could too have taken my japanese studies more seriously early on when life was easy~ thank you for this video. Ill keep doing what I can!
Thank you for encouraging others to engage in something foreign to themselves, something different. For the first 25 years of my life I had no interest in Japan whatsoever, but at the age of 26 I started dating a man who was moving to Tokyo. I ended up moving with him. A very scary (in a good way) and different experience than I ever thought I had ever had. We stayed for a year and moved back to the US due to some ill family members. After 5 years we have decided to move back to Tokyo, so I am currently studying Japanese; regardless of how difficult it is, I adore it. Thank you so much for your message and for sharing your experience.
Truly inspirational story, Loretta. It's so interesting that your initial study abroad sparked something in you. It's led you on quite a journey. What's even more interesting is that your desire to keep learning never went away. With your Japanese you have another lens to see and communicate, through. It's going to be so interesting to see where this path leads you. Sky's the limit! 100% respect.
Thank you SO much for sharing your story, Loretta! What an inspiring lady you are! I grew up in South East Asia and had many Japanese friends at the international school I went to. I loved Japan and Japanese since that moment and told myself that one day I would study it at university. Well, when I came back to the UK there were no Jpse classes and no one was interested AT ALL. Undaunted, I continually scoured bookstores for Jpse language books and held on to them like they were gold. I was told at high school that, because I wasn't good at German and my French was okay but not great, that there'd be no point in me applying to read for a degree in Jpse (by the way, that's complete rubbish but I tended to accept what my teachers told me back then). I was quite devastated. So I went on and did something different for my degree, got a job, etc. Years and years passed. BUT - when I turned 34, I decided to reinvestigate. Lo and behold, I got a place to study Japanese on a postgraduate degree program in the best school in the UK!!!! Don't EVER give up, that's my motto. Chase your dream ALWAYS. xx
That little part towards the end where you encourage us to follow what we want to do, what we want to learn, as soon as it's possible for us was.. well.... so, so encouraging. Your tone throughout the video was seriously sweet and I felt reenergized by what you said. Thank you for sharing your experience and this video with us! Much love from Argentina
あなたの日本語はとても上手です。私は中国の学生で、ロンドンで勉強していますが、今は日本語を勉強しています。言語を学ぶことは非常に興味深いことです。 I agree with you that how important to learn a new language! As a Chinese student in London, since I almost finish my study in English, I'm learning Japanese by myself recently. In Chinese, we call language like "a door of language": 一门语言，it means a language like a door, it could help you to open a new world. Language is also like a history book. There are full of interesting vocabularies to tell you the past of the memories of this nation. Thank you for sharing so inspiring video! 日本語を勉強頑張る。ありがとうございます。
Such a lovely video!! I really needed this sort of inspiration today. I am currently working as an ALT in a public Japanese high school. Asides from test studying (for Kanken and JLPT), I don't utlize my Japanese as much as I should. At one point, I developed a phobia of speaking Japanese to natives. I feel completely drained and as if I am fighting an uphill battle. Even with a total of 8 years (4 from uni) under my belt, I feel as if my Japanese has gotten nowhere at all. Maybe I should reshape my focus as to why I am in Japan. When I was first selected to work as an ALT in Japan, my goal was to just live there. Four years later of doing ALT, even with this unforgettable experience, it is not my main focus. Now that I am in Japan, and don't want to teach English, I am trying to figure out more options. Sorry for rambling on. Good video!! PS: I'm also from the DMV! :D
OMG. I cannot tell you how wonderful it is to hear your story of learning Japanese. Thank you so much! I am getting into Japanese myself, I am a high school student, and it is very encouraging to hear your story. I want to move to Japan at some point, and I just wanted to say THANK YOU.
idk why i felt so emotional at the end.. but here is my language journey! Living in the persian gulf, knowing arabic can open many doors for you. I dont know why but at 13 i decided i wanted to transfer to a government school (which is alll in arabic) from my private school (Which was all english) but i am glad i did! I am fluent in arabic and have no communication problems. My job opportunities have increased, considering I speak 4 languages, japanese excluded. and right now i am taking japanese level 1 at uni and i plan to complete all levels and apply for japanese grad studies scholarship in the future! your video really motivated me to try harder at learning japanese. sometimes when i listen to you or other non japanese people speak japanese so fluently i begin to doubt myself but then i think about the time i thought i would never be able to sound native arabic speaker but i do now! Thanks for the motivation ありがとうございます！今日からもっとがんばります！
Just wanted to say I stumbled upon your channel nearly 5 years ago when I started learning Japanese. I never stopped so thanks to your inspiration to learn, listening to your video with no subtitles is a breeze. Appreciate the uploads!
おもしろいときれいですね！ I am 25 and just started learning Japanese about 1 year ago. I strive to reach the level you have achieved! I dream to be a teacher in art and language. thank you for the great video.
Listening to your stories and the way you speak so fluently gives me hope. I am not studying in any schools but teaching myself and have a teacher from italki weekly, I want to live in Japan one day and not because of anime or grand fantasies. I'm in love with the history, culture and people of Japan. Seeing other people who are foreign but are living comfortably and speaking fluently makes me so happy. Thank you for your videos ! xx
You have no idea how much this video helps me! I've been learning Japanese for some time now (got my N2 certification last December, currently learning for N1), and watching this video really sparks my motivation to study harder since going to Japan is one of my dreams. I also uploaded 1 or 2 videos of myself learning Japanese, but I haven't uploaded anything for maybe a year, 色々迷っているからです。Maybe I'll start uploading again... I remember how fun it is to shoot and edit videos haha. 動画ありがとうございます！
Our paths have a lot of similarities, I studied Japanese at high school from 2003, and it was the turning point of my life that culminated in me moving to Japan in 2016. Your Japanese is one of the best I’ve heard, as you are able to express your logic with clarity and also maintain a sense of authenticity rather than putting on a “mask” personality or completely changing the voice as some other language learners do when they are (probably) not yet quite comfortable with the language. I also love how you recognize that there is much to improve even though you have great fluency, I am probably what others would call “fluent” and use Japanese every day in the workplace, but like you, its a case of 日々精進！
Wow i had no idea you were from NOVA or did marching band! I grew up in the Virginia Beach area and did marching band as well. I also had no idea the NOVA schools taught multiple languages. I agree with you about the importance of experiencing a language at an early age. The schools in my area offered French and Spanish in 6th grade but that was the earliest you could take a language in public school. Having these opportunities are so important bc learning another language exposes you to so much more in life. I started Japanese my sophomore year and then went abroad and now I'm moving there in August to work and I know that wouldn't have happened if I wasn't exposed to Japanese. Like you I was first interested in Japanese bc of anime, but there's so much more that the language can introduce me to. Thanks for making this video!.
I agree with you. I live in Prince William County which is across the river from Fairfax County and one of the things that I've learned by living here is that this is a big world; not everybody is like "you" and "you" is not like everybody. I took German for two years in college because I needed the elected to graduate but when I went to Germany to live, I was so happy that I was able to communicate with the people there. The same is true when you learn Japanese or Korean or Hindi or French. If you want to do something very simple like take a bus someplace, do not expect the bus driver to flip out the English dictionary. If you want to live in the world of the people, you going to have to learn how to get along with other people. If you want to stay locked in at home and never go to the store or never go out for a snack, you still to communicate with other people. Should we all be somewhat multilingual - we most certainly should be. It just seems to make sense!
Your language skills are so fluent and amazing. Seriously. I always wished I would have spent more time on foreign language when I was in high school, but I'm trying now. I've studied Japanese on and off for close to ten years but I'm still very basic. I can't form more than one or two basic sentences at a time, and my reading skills are below average. My high school only offered two languages: German and Spanish. I wish more places would consider offering more Asian languages like Chinese, Japanese, and Korean, as they're very important (I think.) I'm focusing on German right now, but I don't even know where to BEGIN when it comes to "studying" so it has been a struggle.
i just started formally learning japanese a few months ago and i have high aspirations to go to japan, so thank you for this video! it inspired me to really study hard so that i may get closer to my goal
With regards to languages getting excluded from curriculums... that's also what happened to my former secondary school (in Germany). When I went there in the 2000s I already felt sorry for a very nice lady who was a qualified Italian language teacher (plus one other subject) but could only teach Italian as an optional language club, never as a class. My year was actually the last year who could choose to study Ancient Latin in school, the next reform made it impossible for STEM-focused schools to "go too much into depth" with teaching languages. =/
We have the same history of wanting to learn Japanese because of anime when I was a kid. Im just envious of you because you got to formally study it in high school. But your words in the near end of the video inspired me to continue practicing and study it even more in the future. I hope i can work in Japan as well. 今日から、もっと頑張ります！ありがとうございましたケムシちゃん🙇🏻
Loretta, you're such an inspiration and wish I would have seen a video like this when I was growing up. I am and would have been so inspired to be much more serious about my language studies and considered making a job out of them. I've been studying foreign languages since I was 14 (now on my 7th one). Though unlike you, I have only intermediate fluency in 2 (Spanish, Russian). You're fluency is really remarkable. I hope whatever the future brings you is wonderful.
I'm starting a Japanese degree at uni this September and even after self-studying, going to Japan for 3 months, loving the language and the culture, and having a beautiful time, I still find myself doubting my choice. Maybe just because people question it so much because it's way more unusual to study here. I find myself worrying about jobs and how useful Japanese would really be for my future. This video helped calm my anxieties just a bit. So I guess I just wanted to say thank you, Loretta. I dunno, does anyone else feel like this?
Hi Loretta~ For some reason, this video really helped me re-evaluate my language journey too! Since I grew up in the UK and then Yemen, I was able to pick up Arabic at a very young age (which is the only reason I speak it decently now). At 13, I was able to begin learning Spanish at school, as well as studying Japanese properly with my tutor from italki. At the moment, I'm working towards 4 language GCSEs (kinda like the SATs in America) for French, Arabic, Japanese and Spanish. It has been really difficult (there's listening, reading, writing and speaking exams for each) but this video helped me realise that I'm doing it to achieve a goal. So, thank you :)
Hi! I'm fifteen and began learning Japanese this year. I moved to Japan this year because of my dad's job and you're so inspiring! I aspire to become fluent like you! Thank you for sharing your story
this video really made me realise how valuable exchange can be though, at the beginning of my exchange i would never have imagined being able to watch a video like this of yours without subtitles but now 8 months through my exchange i could understand everything without subtitles (minus a few special vocab) buT STILL! this really motivated me to keep going, and to even start focusing on my korean! thanks always loretta
Listening to your story was so heartwarming! I'm studying my 4th course of Japanese at me home university, but after visiting Japan through a program for free for two weeks at the end of last year, I knew I had to go and study there. I had my doubts before, especially since I have a boyfriend back at home, but I was determined and I applied. In the coming week I should get my answer whether I'm accepted to the fall semester or not. If I study well there, I'll get to stay for the spring semester as well, which I'll be working hard toward! I can't wait for the application results to come in! Working between my home country and Japan is a dream of mine as well. I just found your channel the other day, but I've been loving it!
everytime I watch your videos I get so happy and motivated to continue learning, I don't have the opportunity to learn Japanese in school so that's why I teach myself but it's a pain in the ass. But watching you gets me so motivated, you're Japanese is so amazing!!
I'm also from NOVA and going through FCPS! You're a huge inspiration to me and it's really cool that we're from the same area! I feel like if you could achieve fluency, then I can do it too! Keep being awesome!
I started learning a month ago after a few months of being obsessed with anime at the age of 21. As important as getting a headstart is, I also want to remind people that they can start late too, even if it feels like they're past the age for learning new things
Hi! I've just discovered your channel while looking for some touristic recommendations for my second trip to Japan and I'm glad I watched this video. As a (newly!) graduated student in Chinese studies, who went to uni in China and slowly starting to learn Japanese, I can say that I am amazed by what you have accomplished so far! You're truly inspiring and I wish to have the same opportunities in the future in China or in Japan !
Somewhere around 13-14yrs old I tried to teach myself Japanese online but when I went into High School I could only choose between Spanish, Latin, or French. So, I chose French & have kept with it because of how much time I've put into the language already and how much I love the language, but my desire to learn Japanese has always been so much greater and also so much more difficult to figure out. Now I'm 25 (still learning French) but as an adult you lose access to quite a lot of resources, at least for free & having to work and whatever can be added conflicts. I wish I could spend everyday just learning without having to struggle with scheduling and paying so much and whatever else. It's tough for sure
Thank you..so informative and inspiring..I hope the public schools keep teaching for the sake of future generations.With Trump such skills are even more important... ..Your gonna be a fantastic Mother when the time comes...What insight, strength and courage..your husband is very luck...wishing you all the best.
I’m from northern virginia too! I am half Japanese and half Black (Blasian!!) I do not speak Japanese, but I am currently trying to learn it. I wish my school taught it, but sadly I live in a county where they don’t (I’m self teaching myself.) I took French in school, but after four years, I want to pursue a language that I have more interest in. Watching your videos is good motivation for me!
Loretta!! I used to watch your videos religiously close to 9 years ago. I lost my old account and with the old account went all of my channels :O I'm so happy to see you doing so well and still loving every moment of it all
Congratulations on almost 100K, Loretta! Very well deserved!! It's wonderful to see someone making videos exposing viewers to more advanced Japanese from more of an educational perspective. I can tell that you genuinely value the time, effort and energy it takes to learn Japanese (or any language, for that matter) because you make content that respects and challenges viewers rather than playing up to "mass appeal" and producing solely English content. Your presentation is also very authentic in your use of visual cues to provide context when speaking and so perfectly embodies the respect you have for the Japanese language, Japanese culture and the experiences of anyone learning a second (third, fourth, etc.) language. 6 years ago I completed my specialist Japanese language studies, on a scholarship but chose to forgo my passion in lieu of working in my home country (Australia) to support my extended family. Like you, I would never have had the opportunity to learn a language if it wasn't for the scholarships I received. For the last 6 years I have felt as though I abandoned my passion by choosing to shift my focus away from completing my Doctorate in Japanese and it's something I've greatly regretted. Now, I've decided to return to the language and I am so glad to see role models like yourself, championing the study of Japanese - particularly at a time when many western schools seem to be removing it from the language curriculum. Once again, congratulations on your incredible achievements! You are so very deserving and I wish you boundless ongoing success and happiness in all of your endeavours! -Isha
You are my inspiration. I'm an italian 16-year-old girl and I started studying japanese last year (even though I had already learned hiragana,katakana and some words/sentences). I'm still a beginner but I know I'm going to study japanese at university when I grow up,I'd like to become a translator one day. I hope I'll make my dreams come true. You're absolutely amazing,though! Keep going and never give up!
Thank you so very much for your Nihongo "testamonial" ! Your journey is an inspiration for me to continue my own personal embracing of this beautiful culture ! I am US born of german parents with german as my first language ;however, I have lived in Canada for 50 years now! My Japanese is coming along quickly because all of the Nihongo vowels and consonants are pronounced the same in German ! I will study harder than ever now ! Blessings ! Nicolaus " Nikku ! Arigato gozaimasta !!!
I am nearly in tears watching this video! My young kids go to a Japanese immersion school, they both started in Kindergarten. People always ask me why, and my generic response is that I want them to learn something new and to give them more opportunities. You're video has explained the 'why' perfectly! Thank you so very much. I cannot wait to show my girls your videos!!!
Loretta I agree with you 100% when you speak of learning about a new culture. Thank you for sharing your story. My earliest encounter with Japanese was during elementary school (besides growing up watching sailor moon). I started with Anime (Inu-yasha 5th grade) from there my interest grew till later in middle school (8th grade) a friend introduced me to Japanese Rock/Pop it opened my eyes to a whole new world. Back then I wasn't serious about learning Japanese but I watched things like dramas,anime, t.v shows ect. Then in high school (9th grade, 2007) I was introduced to Korean Pop (K-pop) another new cultural experience. Neither language was offered in HS As I got older I faced a difficult question Did I want to learn Japanese or Korean? since I was so involved in both cultures. I haven't formally studied either in a school setting but I can understand some Korean & Japanese when I hear it, korean more so (even though i can't read the writing or speak it good). I'm currently in university (I'm 25) I really want to take a language class with my current interest I'll probably take Korean but Who knows I may still want to take Japanese in the future. One thing I can say is I wish I would have started earlier w/ languages since I've been in both cultures for about 10 years
I WISH I had started japanese at a younger age, but unfortunately they didn't have those classes at my school in MN. So I had to start self teaching myself at 25, now I'm 27 and I've realized that I want to use Japanese in my everyday life, but sometimes I just feel so discouraged because I think I'm starting too late. I want to go back to school I just wish it wasn't so expensive! This video is just what I needed. I'm sure I can find some scholarships. ロレッタさん本当にありがとうございます❢
Good luck with that! Im self teaching myself as well which is basically imo sucks but I have no choice since here in Hungary theres like no schools which supports Japanese courses at my age(17). Also Im going to visit Japan for 2 weeks in November and Im hella scared about it since hearin a speech like this makes me confused and unable to understand things. However I dont want to use English in Japan so I got 2 rough months to get in the shape. Anyways Im sure u will be fine man B-)
@@EscapeRouteMedia I got ya beat...I'm 47 & just started learning. Definitely never too old to learn something new. I didn't start for a career change but simply because I love Japan!
I started Chinese (Mandarin) at 25 and I am 35 today. Just started self-teaching Japanese, so it’s never too late. Of course knowing Chinese characters makes Japanese vocabulary a LITTLE bit easier for me to learn, but not by much!!!
Hi Loretta! I really enjoyed listening to your experiences! I was even more fortunate to have my middle school offer students foreign languages and even band class- to show how versatile schools can be! I started to learn Spanish then, but only took it more seriously in high school when I surrounded myself with Spanish-speaking people. I love this languages and although I’m not majoring in it, working as a nutritionist in the US benefits from knowing a foreign language, especially Spanish. My parents are Chinese and I wish they taught me formal Chinese phrases when I was very young, but it doesn’t matter now. Now I’m Inspired on my own to learn Mandarin, Cantonese, and Toisanese. Thanks for being an inspiration! I look forward to your future videos!
your fluency is astounding, I managed to understand some of what you spoke, but you speak really fast! I've been studying japanese for some time now, and I want to go to japan to get a masters degree once I graduate from my engineering program, seeing someone else who's doing something similar is really encouraging (and who has reached that level of fluency, seriously, you are incredible)
I started taking Japanese in college because my high school didnt offer it, but it's my major now and I would love to study abroad and hopefully live in Japan after college! I have a lot of Japanese friends because my family hosted students who traveled abroad from Japan and they are extremely encouraging! As a kid I never thought I'd be a language major but im so glad I picked it!
![Why I Chose a Japanese (and not a U.S) University [MY RESEARCH]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/Ykjbco2X2dg/mqdefault.jpg)
![Why I Chose a Japanese (and not a U.S) University [MY RESEARCH]](/img/tr.png)
Kemushi-chan, you’re such a role model for me. It means so much to see a fellow black woman studying Japanese, especially when lot of people in my hometown ridicule me for picking it. But I’m determined. I want to achieve your level of fluency and confidence someday.
lol!
When I was younger I definitely....confused some people haha. That being said, it suddenly "made sense" when I had a marketable, unique skill to use during job-hunting. No matter what the skill, a usable skill in life or work will set you a part, eventually for the better. :) Wishing you all the best!
you need to move. i live in minneapolis and there are many black people studying japanese. you will find a support system among us and many of us are advanced level and beyond. keep working at it 応援していますよ！
KuraBlue 頑張って!!
Why is it weird for a black person to want to learn japanese?
FELLOW STUDENTS! I wanted to reiterate here that even though I collected my brightest moments into one sound bite, I understand personally how frustrating it can be to feel that another person's opportunities could never be a reality for yourself. Education/scholarships are a tremendous blessing, and it often makes me angry/sad when I remember how hard it was to pay for basic expenses, or how many students simply didn't have access to the basic things I might take for granted.
It's not that I was just "lucky" in life, but that someone actually took the initiative to create these opportunities for students after them.
One of my biggest goals right now is to do the same, and begin CREATING the types of chances that helped bring me to where I am today.
I hope in the comments we can discuss not only our goals, but also the struggles that need to be addressed. Tuition? School books / laptop fees? Living Costs? More programs? Please let me hear your voice and experience in a comment below.
Thank you for watching today and I can't wait to hear more about you.
KemushiChan ロレッタ you saw an opportunity and seized it. Many would have passed it by
KemushiChan ロレッタ I'm studying abroad in Tokyo for the next year and I'm SO incredibly thankful for scholarship support.
Have been wondering if a 電子辞書 would be a worthwhile purchase. Have you used one in your studies? And would you recommend them to intermediate/advanced learners of Japanese?
Hello, KemushiChan ロレッタ !
My name is Kelsey (my fiance, Evan, and I share a RUclips account, sorry for any confusion. Haha)! I was also interested in Japanese culture when I was young, but Japanese wasn't taught at any of my schools growing up. The language I learned in high school for mandatory credit was not a language I had any connection to, nor was I inspired to learn any more of it after I graduated. I can't imagine how amazing it would have been to have the opportunity to start learning Japanese at a young age! I'm 25 now and I honestly think about this all the time because I'm currently trying to start learning Japanese seriously, but I don't know where best to start learning and I'm very financially limited.
But, after watching your video about the MEXT scholarship for research students through embassy recommendation I got really excited! I feel like this would be such an amazing opportunity to finally act on my interests and learn in japan with a goal in mind.
Would you be willing to give me some MEXT advice? Applications are open for a month, and I'm trying to find a Japanese university that has an english taught MBA program. Are you enrolled in an english taught program, or were you able to be enrolled in a Japanese taught program because your Japanese is so advanced?
I like Sophia University, but I'm reading that it is a highly saught-after private university, so I'm hoping for some suggestions of some other universities which offer english taught MBA programs that may be more attainable to me/ look more financially probable in the eyes of MEXT. Which ones did you come across in your search for a university when you were first applying?
I'm looking through faculty at a few different universities trying to find a professor that specializes in something I can get excited about so I may build my research proposal to best take advantage of their expertise. How did you find a professor to be your mentor through your studies? Did you have a specific area of study in mind before choosing someone, or did you find someone you liked and build off of their interests?
Thank you so much for reading this all the way to the end (TaylorB reference lol)! Any advice you'd be willing to give would be so extremely appreciated! Thank you so much for this video, and I look forward to your next video of you, Boomer, and Lily! 😁
KemushiChan ロレッタ
i was motivated to your video thank you bcoz of that i'm really have to study more harder but with the heart, bcoz I'm also dream to live or work in japan for my family and also reach what i wanted in life. Thank you for sharing all you been through in your life. It was really a good start for me to be inspired and motivated in to your words.
This is a very interesting topic. I supported the petition. Here's why:
I had Japanese language course in middle school in Maryland. I would have continued Japanese language courses in high school, but I ended up moving to a different state where there were no Japanese language courses taught at all. Even though I originally got into Japanese "anything" through anime as a kid, it was my middle school language teacher who truly introduced me Japanese culture. He actually traveled to Japan sometime before the semester and saw how Japanese people lived. So, he worked with local people to build a mock set of a typical Japanese home at school and we got to go to it once a week and practice living as a Japanese person for class.
This included taking off shoes before stepping onto the Tatami mats, rolling up the futon and putting it away, learning where clothes are put away versus using a dresser in the US, and sitting with a kotatsu to learn the difference between staying warm at home in winter versus how its done in the US among other things. I will never forget that experience. In fact, the teacher's mock Japanese home garnered enough attention to be put into an official museum! Experiences like this is why I signed the petition. If schools take out Japanese language, then the opportunity to teach students about Japanese culture dwindles down to a brief mention in a textbook. I know, because the high school I went to after moving did exactly that for its social studies course.
Thank you for sharing the video and here's to your continues success and the success of the petition!
I love hearing you speak Japanese!
Sam サムコ I was just bragging about you to Boomer this morning 💕❤️ You're amazing too!!
awwwww Silhouetta I miss youuuu!
Sam サムコ _
get a room
Your videos remind me of when I was learning Japanese growing up. I remember the first word I ever learnt was すし when I took part in a fundamentals class during a high school open day. I spent so much time burning that word into my reading and writing memory, as well as a few other katakana and Kanji I learnt on the day. I fell in love with the sound of J-Pop and it evolved into becoming enamoured with Japanese culture.
Luckily, my high school offered Japanese studies from 7th to 12th grade at the time, so I was able to take it every year possible at the highest level I was permitted. I was blessed to have the opportunity to go on a heavily subsidised exhange for a couple of weeks in high school, and it was one of the best experiences of my life. Living in another country at a young age really changes your perspective on the world. It wouldn't have happened if I wasn't able to demonstrate how passionate I was about Japanese language and culture since year 7.
University made studying Japanese beyond high school near impossible for me because there weren't joint programs with the core profession I wanted to pursue. Though, I can't seem to completely forget my Japanese and can still hold some very basic conversations. It even helped me develop some professional relationships with others who felt more comfortable speaking Japanese down the line.
I'm pretty sure they are phasing out language studies in schools here in Australia, too. I wish they were respected more, as they can spark new passion in and create opportunities for nearly any student. Hopefully this video helps to raise awareness for that!
Thanks for your videos, Loretta!
ありがとうございます！
I guess Im asking the wrong place but does anybody know a way to get back into an Instagram account?
I was dumb lost the password. I love any tricks you can give me.
@@callumaden9373 Huh?
I love your attitude. Yes, Japanese is a tough language to learn. And by working at it, I can learn it. Your bright, cheerful energy has helped bring you along.
By the Numbers only hard thing is their writing system. Japanese is a very logical language. How the sentences are build for example.
only thing that is maybe hard is the writing system since its vastly different to ours but besides that the language itself is not hard
I think it's easier than other Languages... Chinese or Korean for instance..
Hey, Thanks for the reply.... Is it? That's great to know...I've heard people say that before.
Torterra Plays Mc chinese is easy imo, japanese just seems like there's millions of things to learn before you can even get started
Loretta, I just wanted to thank you so much for inspiring me over and over again. I am currently 18 years old and I've been learning Japanese for about 3.5 years now, but I feel like I still suck. For the first 3 years I only had classes once a week for an hour, and even now, I don't have the time to study Japanese all that much. I have classes two times a week now, but they are such a low level that I feel like I don't even improve at all. So, after all these years, I still feel like I'm stuck at the "absolute beginner" level.
But watching your videos, especially this one, I feel *so* motivated to start working harder. Being able to speak Japanese at least somewhat well is one of my biggest goals for my life, and now I finally feel inspired to study, and study hard. This video seems like that last push to take me over the edge, and honestly? I can't even wait to start working on my grammar, my vocabulary and my kanji.
I might not have the same opportunities you have - I couldn't study Japanese a lot at high school and I can't study it all that well at uni, either - but I want to make the best out of what opportunities I have. And maybe, in a few years, I'll watch this video again, look back at where I was now and wonder why I ever struggled with Japanese.
Whatever will come, I want to thank you for inspiring me - us, with every video you make, for being so honest and wonderful and for just being you. Lots and lots of love from Germany & いつもありがとうございます ♡
as another fellow studying Japanese by self, try communicating with Japan People for learning a vast vocabulary
i usually visiting a web Showroom-live where Japanese people broadcasting live from amateur to idol
even tough i'm still got a little help from google translate :p
Thank you so much for the warm, sweet comment! Funny enough, seeing everyone else get motivated here in the comments is having the same reverse effect on me again. I really do hope your dreams take you far, and that along the way it's an amazing journey.
classes once a week in anything is going to cause a lot of regression. It's very inefficient. I have studied languages since i was 11 and daily exposure is key even if it is just music or a magazine article, etc.
Even if you don't ever get to a super fluent level in Japanese, don't worry too much about it. As long as you know basic Japanese, visiting Japan at the very least isn't a big challenge. There's a RUclips channel (Abroad in Japan), and the host first moved to Japan without much knowledge of Japanese at all. He can now speak fairly fluent Japanese (Mostly due to immersion), but when he first started he didn't know much. He managed to make it through that, because (Surprisingly to some people) many Japanese people can understand enough English to be able to understand you if you need to use it.
I'm 12 and learning it I use basic apps like duolingo and books and self studying but I understand with you mean with the time thing since time t gets in my way so although it may be difficul I believe with enough practice you'll get it 💖
ロレッタさんが話す日本語が大好きです！知的で頭が良い話し方ですよね！英語を学ぶ日本人として、尊敬しています😊
女子ですか。
k t
この子の日本語は、ほんとすごい。自然だわ
話が長すぎてつまらないと思いましたが、k tさんの優しいコメントを見て安心しました。ありがとうございます！英語がんばってください！
ロレッタさん、hey!!!
I'm Japanese American, born in the states and full Japanese blood.
Your story is so inspiring and I shared this with my Mom, and I aspire to be someone like you.
Also, this made me appreciate being able to speak both English and Japanese.
My high school doesn't have a Japanese class, and you video made me realize how important broadening your language is.
I am interested in attending college in Japan and working there in the entertainment world! This year (thankfully) I was chosen to study abroad at a university for half the year :) Just wanted to say Thank you for making this vid
第二言語を勉強するチャンスはやっぱり大事だね。私はドイツ人ですけど、１１歳の頃、お父さんがフィラデルフィアで仕事を見つけて、家族四人でアメリカへ引っ越しました。７ヶ月経ったらドイツへ帰ったんですけど、そのお陰ではじめて本心で英語を勉強したいと思いました。その７ヶ月の間は普通の中学校に通ってたんだからそれも随分勉強になったと思いますけど、やっぱり帰ってからちゃんと独学して、色んなものを読んで、１１歳のボカビュラリーだけじゃなくてもっと大人的な、ちゃんとした言い方とかを身につけました。
それで、勉強はなんと楽しいことだと気づきました。
日本は子供時代から興味があったんだから（特に任天堂とか）１３・１４歳の時から日本語を自分で勉強し始めました。で、去年の夏、高校を卒業した直後、３ヶ月日本に滞在させてもらいました。まずは外国人の多いホステルで宿の代わりに働きましたが、そのホステルのお客さんのお陰で観光関係の翻訳仕事をやり始めた。日本語→英語の翻訳ですね。まあ、観光ビサだったから宿・食事という代償の仕事だったんですけどね。
それからドイツに帰って、今は大学で翻訳の専門をやっています。夢は翻訳じゃなくて通訳者ですけど、日本語の通訳はまだまだです…が、この動画を見て改めて勉強し続けたいなと思いました。
それにしても、今まで勉強できたことはやっぱり家族の金銭的と感情的なサポートのお陰ですね。本当に感謝しています。言語教育は他の国の人に繋がるものだから特にこのグローバルな近代社会で欠かせないことだと思います。だから、そういう機会を作る教育制度を支えたいです。
nils8950UTAUACC
完璧で素晴らしい文章ですね。これからも頑張って通訳になってください。
J’ai rien compris
nils8950UTAUACC
私も日本人ではないので、日本に行ったこともないけど、独学で日本語をマスターするのは無理かなとたまには思ってるんですけど、nils8950UTAUACC さん(もちろんロレッタさんも)の言葉になんか感激されました！勇気をもらったみたいくらい。これから頑張りましょう！
私も日本語を勉強している！ブラジル人だけど日本に興味があるから十二歳だった時に勉強し始めたんだ。今年の冬は初めて日本に行って本当に日本語で話す機会があった。前はブラジルを出たことがなかった私にとって、それは凄く貴重な経験で、心の中で何か変わったと感じがする。六週間だけだったが色々学んで今は日本はもっと好きになった。だから、日本語を学んでいる皆様、諦めないで頑張って下さい。きっと日本に着いたら「大変だったが、頑張って良かった！」と思うよ(o^^o) 私はまだペラペラ出来ないけど、頑張り続ける！ ファイトファイト
@@alsamiyasfh4416 Personne n'a rien compris :')
Absolutely lovwd this! Thanks for sharing your journey. I've been learning Japanese independently for a number of years now on and off. In the past I'd get surges of demotivation because nobody understands why I'm interested in learning Japanese. For me it's nothing to do with Anime or Manga. I've always been into learning another language and what makes Japanese stand out out for me is how logical it is and how different it is from my own. As well as the Japanese culture.
Hey Loretta! It was so nice of you to let us go through this throwback, I absolutely loved getting to know your story.
I actually could relate a lot because I'm Brazilian and I've spoken English as a second language for around 9 years, forever thankful for being grated a few scholarships and opportunities, specially throughout my time in high school, that would eventually change my destiny and lead me to where I am today.
I've been an ESL Teacher for 3 years and studying Japanese for 7 years now, my goal is to preach the Gospel in Japan and teach there as well!
Gerson Rocha amen , I like that .. let’s preach , where are you from in Brazil ?
Wow that's amazing dude! I rarely hear ppl talking about preaching nowadays. I'm so happy I came across this comment.
ロレッタさん、
動画をしてくれて本当にありがとうございます！僕は15歳で三年間日本語を勉強してきました。ロレッタさんの動画みてすっごいやる気がもらいました。心の底から感謝を申し上げます。
僕は日本語能力試験三級は合格したが今年二級を目指します。でも僕は将来何をするべきかをわからなくて困っています。どうやらお手伝いください。
ありがとう
日本語字幕もつけましたのでCCボタンをクリックするとご覧いただけます！ I added Japanese & English subtitles, but if any of you would like to add another language here's the link! I am so grateful to everyone of you who supports my channel and helps with subtitles. THANK YOU! ruclips.net/user/timedtext_video?ref=share&v=2PGgeIh18_A
KemushiChan ロレッタ
Thank you so much for the subtitles 😊
Omg, I lived in VA as well and went to Fairfax Coounty school. I'm currently trying to teach myself Japanese, do you have any personal tips on easy ways of learning it? Tysm💖
Omg, I lived in VA as well and went to Fairfax Coounty school. I'm currently trying to teach myself Japanese, do you have any personal tips on easy ways of learning it? Tysm💖
Can you break the Japanese bit by bit in the English Translation next time, please?? For example: Niku (Meat) bakari (Only) taberu to (If Fat) hutoru (To Grow Fat) yo (Stating a strong conviction or to convey). God will BLESS you.
If I make them for German, they'd be only translated from your English translation but I suppose that they are well translated from you
I'm planning on studying Japanese and Korean (my second language) in college, but unfortunately my high school didn't support Japanese classes, so I'll be starting next year as a freshman in college. I've managed to teach myself hiragana/katakana and some basic kanji already which I hope will give me a little bit of an advantage. Also, anime has taught me a few words (more or less).
I do hope that I can one day study abroad like you do. ❤
You can always check the internet for basic grammars to start the study so won't be completely new to the subject in college :D
Korean and Japanese grammar are very similar :) Once you learn one of them, it should come easy for the other. Good luck though my friend! I’ll hope to continue my Korean soon after learning French and Spanish
Me too, my school doesn’t have Japanese courses do I hope to study it in college
凄い！ただ日本語が流暢ってだけじゃなく、話の組み立て方も素晴らしい。
Your story really surprised me because I also live in Virginia and am only a few hours away from William and Mary!
After I graduated high school, I attended my local community college for almost two years before depression hit. I experienced a major identity crisis and didn't know who I was anymore. I isolated myself from society for another two years, and that brings us to today. My depression is not nearly as bad as it once was, which is great! But in a way I still feel as though I'm stuck. I've been separated from society for so long that I'm not sure how to ease my way back into it. I'm not sure if I should go back to college or not because I'm fearful my depression will come back if I do.
This coming July I will be attending my first ever missions trip with my church to Southeast Asia; and while I'm super excited to be going somewhere new, Japan is where my heart is. I have always dreamed of going there but have yet to find an opportunity. Over the years I've tried to teach myself Japanese, but you can only go so far by yourself. 😅
Sorry this comment is all over the place, and it sounds super depressing, 😂 I just decided to open up my heart a bit because this video really inspired me! I know that one day I'll get better! I'm hoping that this upcoming missions trip will open new doors for me to try new things and learn more about myself!
Thank you for sharing this video with us! And also thank you if you've actually read all of this! I hope you keep up this great content! 🤗
dont give yourselves limits .the mind is very powerful and only listens to what "YOU" tell it. im a selftaught japanese student with 3 years studying by myself with last year being fortunate enough getting a japanese girlfriend and she boosted my ablity while already being "FLUENT" enough to communicate with her while self studying and even way before metting her you can go very far by yourself ive been studying japanese bymyself for 4 years and the fact my gf can understand me is an accomplishment
Chelsey Fudd I’m actually really amazed to come across a comment like this, as I feel in a very similar situation to you. I am 24 now, but dropped out of college at 20 due to severe depression and agoraphobia. Since then, I’ve only had a few odd jobs that don’t last, and due to my struggles with mental illness, I isolated myself from friends and family and society as a whole. I’m currently in that ‘stuck’ phase too, of trying to get ahold of my life again, and start building my career and social life again.
I know this is long, but I just wanted to let you know you’re not alone in this situation! I was really happy to read about you going on a mission trip across the world, that is really inspiring to me. :) I’d also love to visit Japan one day, and I know that eventually I will, it’s just a matter of getting back on my feet again.
Anyways, I just wanted to reach out and wish you best of luck on your trip! Take care of yourself.
Thank you for your kind words! It's so encouraging to be reminded that I'm not alone during this challenging time of my life, and that there are also others in similar situations as me.
I pray that an opportunity will arise for you to travel and try something new as well! Maybe not even necessarily across the world, maybe even somewhere in your own community! Somewhere new and exciting that will give you a refreshed sense of purpose and inspire you to push forward!
Thank you again for your kind response! I'm glad to know we're not alone! :)
めっちゃ日本語上手い…
俺も英語頑張らなきゃ！
Wonderful inspiration! Such hard work paid off!
If I may leave a message for those of us that are older but still interested in Japan or any other language/culture. It's NEVER too late to get started! While opportunities and experiences may vary, I do believe you can still experience great things by pursuing your interests and/or goals. I'm going to Japan for the first time this month and I've been out of college for a decade lol. But I have such a passion for Japan that I will still pursue it despite being in my 30's. So everyone let's do our best!!!
Wow, my school only has Spanish now that French was dropped from it last year😕. I'm into Japanese largely because I like how articulated it sounds😅, it's cool to see how you picked it up. And you're so fluent too🤗😱
Thank you for being transparent.
I get afraid sometimes because I feel like I started too late. I'm going on 29 and started off and on 4 years ago. I've been consistent over the past year and a half. I wonder if I'll ever have the opportunity to use Japanese. I'm still going though. I've come too far to stop.
Don't give up! You've already put 4 years of had work into learning the language, best to continue and once an opportunity presents it self you can seize it ^^
I feel the same ㅠㅠI'm always thinking if it's still too late for me to improve in japanese...or learn a new language
It's never too late. Sure the best time to learn something was 10 years ago but the second best time is right now. Push yourself, dedicate your free time to practice and immerse yourself in the language and culture as much as you can. I'm knocking on 28 and I've only just started learning. I just focus on one small thing at a time and master it before moving on. I'm gonna get there eventually, mark my words! Enough chit chat though, time to study 😎
I started at 33 I'm 35 now. I feel you i feel like its too late for me but honestly i don't give a damn it will work out somehow as long as I put in the work to learn the language. I am completely self studying so far. And I put in a lot effort and time. For me though its more like going to japan as an artist or going with an intra-company transfer in my current company and hoping i can get by with work experience vs a college degree bc i do not have one but in recent yrs that is becoming a little more lax that work experience in a feel can equate to a college degree.
@@SyrianSoaper I'm with you there. I'm 33 now and finally learning the language that I wish I would've or could've started 10+ years ago. We can do this!
ロレッタの声質は日本語と合っていて違和感がないですよ。
Voice of Loretta is suited to Japanese.
I am 32. Native English and Spanish speaker from America. Been obsessed daily with learning and mastering the Japanese language. It’s so intriguing to me I can’t let it go. I’ve been researching and studying Japanese now for the last 5 weeks. I have a goal to master it no matter how long it takes me. Eventually goal is to pass the JLPT-N1 at some point in life. How ever, can it take me somewhere at a older age (say by the time I’m in my 40s) i master the language. i am dedicating time and some money and looking into going abroad (which costs too). Will it be a waste going into at a older age for further potential possibilities or will I be too old by the time I master it to do anything with it? Either way, I am doing this for the my own fun and I’m extremely enjoying this challenge. I’m passionate about it no matter where it takes me I want to be able to speak fluent Japanese without having to think much about it. That’s my main goal. But would be better if the goal pays off somehow?. I guess that’s a hard questions to answer but would appreciate some your thoughts/inputs/advice. Thanks! Keep up the great videos!
Thanks for sharing your passion. How did it go so far?
Loretta!! I sent you that tweet asking you to sign the petition,,,, this video means so much to us all in NoVA & JASWDC! Thanks for including a link to the petition in the description! (Also, I'm studying Japanese because I want to start exchange programs between Japanese universities and HBCUs, among other things! I've been feeling like things are hopeless and I'm wandering aimlessly, but this video inspired me to keep working! The biggest hindrance isn't exactly a lack of resources, it's a lack of KNOWLEDGE regarding what resources are available; a lack of a cohesive community of Japanese learners and expats [I've found a strong anti-beginner and anti-helping/exasperated sentiment among most higher level speakers and expatriates who have lived in Japan for a long time]; and finally, there isn't a big push for Japan-America cultural exchange anymore. In Virginia, DC, and Maryland, we see a HUGE focus on modern and popular Latino, Ethiopian, and Korean culture, however, outside of the Cherry Blossom Festival, there isn't that same sense of openness with regards to Japanese culture.)
mniy425 I want to thank you for bringing the issue into attention and forwarding it to Loretta. I also want to ask you if you can elaborate, when you state that you are seeing a pushback from expat in Japan. Are you saying they are not willing to let others learn beginning Japanese ? Or there not interested in the whole Japan’ and US exchanged program ? I’m sorry for the questions, I was just confuse on that assertion that expat are not willing to let other learn the language .
Paine Mcphee A lot of ex-pats have an aura of, "everyone who is new is embarrassing and annoying". From the Tofugu podcasters to the RUclipsr Dogen, I see so many people assuming a.) Anyone starting to be interested in Japan is probably a weeb and are all embarrassing by virtue of being new, b.) People beginning to have interest in Japan or who haven't traveled there yet aren't putting enough time into researching things for themselves or are asking to be coddled ("stop asking me xyz, Google it!" As a teacher, answers like that really grinds my gears. My kids ask the same questions over and over, so I show them how to answer questions on their own and make those resources easily available to them! Or sometimes they really did do their best, they're just stuck on something I can help with!), and c.) If you teach English in Japan you're lesser than other people and deserve to be shamed for it. (I teach English as a second language in America, and I really don't get why ESL in a different country should be regarded any differently?? Teaching is something people go to school for and have to be certified to do...)
There's also this weird sentiment that if you don't completely assimilate to Japanese culture, you're being a bad/embarrassing representative of your country. As a WOC that REALLY upsets me. We acknowledge that forcing immigrants to reject their culture and completely assimilate to American culture is racist and horrible, but people measure how successful you are in Japan by how assimilated you are. If you're bitter and blend in entirely, then you're seen as "good"; if you're still excited and optimistic and stand out in any way (still can't speak the language well, make little cultural faux pas, etc.) you're seen as embarrassing or bad. Who does that judgement affect the most? People new to life in Japan, or those in the beginner stages of learning Japanese.
When I was in an immersion program, upper level students constantly ostracized the lower level students! They easily lost patience with them when a few brave souls tried to start a conversation, and constantly made comments about how bad they were and how they should be embarrassed. My teachers applauded how I "took the time to speak with the lower students", as if we weren't all beginners at some point and everyone deserved to be treated with respect...
I see a LOT of long-time nonnative Japanese speakers and long-term expats cop the same attitude and exclude new people, favoring to only be with those who have the same level of skill or experience, and judging those who don't. It's disheartening!!
@@kotori40 Learn Japanese with fellow weebs on VRchat lol
私もDCエリア（メリーランド）出身です！ロレッタさんの経験、なぜ日本語勉強し続いている理由をシェアしてくれてありがとうございました。It makes me feel very special to hear the success stories of someone from the same area as I am. I stumbled upon this video a bit late, but I'm so glad I found your channel! I hope you know you're a huge role model for students, especially from the DC area. Maybe someday we'll meet in Japan! 本当にありがとうございました！
Come on over buddy!!!!!
@@kemushichan Of course! Right after uni graduation next year :)) thank you for responding!!!!
I am older, and starting from square one with learning Japanese. I remember watching your video “ I am going to Japan” right after I had just returned from a 90day trip to Japan. I recall how fluent you sounded speaking Japanese on that video, and hoped one day I would sound like that. Well fast forward and you are beyond fluent, and I just started learning to read and write hiragana & katakana. This is going to be a long journey.
You must have studied hard. Your pronunciation and language skills spot on. My husband and I translate Japanese to English for a living and I taught English near Osaka. I love hearing people honing their skills and sharing experiences like this.
知らない間に更に日本語が流暢になっててビックリした！！すごい！！
これからも応援しています
Thanks Loretta for your fun and interesting content!
ロレッタさんの、方向性が決まっていない若いうちに他文化に触れる重要性は凄く共感しました!
自分が通っていた高校は日本ではたぶん珍しくて、英語にフランス語にドイツ語に中国語にと幅広く選択科目がありましたね。それとまずは遊びで楽しんで言語を学ばせてくれたのが良かったです😄英語でしりとりしたり、英語の絵しりとりとか🌸それから海外にあちこち行っていた友人はフットワーク軽くて世界観も大きいから魅力的です。
ロレッタさんの何が凄いってその探究心ですよ！１０年て言葉にしたら簡単ですけど、その間あなたは情熱が冷めることなく学び続けてきたわけでしょう。自分はダラダラやった気になっただけで英語身につかなかった。ロレッタさんほど情熱がなかったんだなと反省しています。
とにかく、ロレッタさんは凄いです！
これからも無理しない程度に動画を待っています💕
それから東京に住んでるのも尊敬します（笑）私は人混みが大の苦手で。。。
Loretta, thank you so much! I honestly really appreciate all that you are doing, as well as what you are trying to do. Although you may or may not see this, I would like to put this out there! I feel that because you've put yourself out there, you deserve to know a bit about me, even if I don't have much to offer! My name is Veronica. I'm 14 years old, and turning 15 later this month. I'm feeling anxious about my future and my plans, like many others. I'm scared that what I believe is my passion, is actually just me overexaggerating my feelings. I'm not sure about many things, but I am sure that you've inspired me a lot! Thank you so much for all the messages you share with us, especially this one! I have a big, big problem with procrastination, like many others. But! My Mum agreed that if I prove that I can overcome that, I can attend a Japanese school every Monday after school.
It's a school that teaches with immersion! I learnt French that exact same way since grade 1 until now, but I still can't help but feel nervous. What if I don't get it? What if I embarass myself over and over again? Should I go for a different school? Should I not try at all? Because of this video, I will try my absolute best!! I believe (albeit with some doubt) that I won't regret studying Japanese as much as I can, so that one day I can do what I love. Ah, I have so many other things I would love to say!! But I'm sorry for writing so much already. ^^; I hope you're having an amazing day/night, and I wish you as much good luck as I can with whatever you need luck with! For anyone else reading this, thank you for even taking the time to read through this, and I sincerely hope you all have good luck as well!
This is so inspiring I’m 13 and I want to study Japanese while I’m studying French in school (I know it’s a bit much) but I really want to and this video helped give another little push of motivation. ❤️
私は、ロレッタさんのその誠実で真摯なお人柄、そして苦労を惜しまない力強い意志に、心から尊敬の念を抱きます。
Self studying Japanese a little over a year I hope to learn how the Music Industry in Japan works & someday break the language barrier.
I have a BA in Music but I know I can get better work experience which has been a journey.
I’m still thinking on Grad school & would like to possibly take Japanese classes to more motivation to grow & learn
I would say if you do make it here for grad school, try to find a way to work in a case study/interview with Sony Music/entertainment and you maybe able to wiggle your way into th industry a lot easier that way. Job hunting is rough, but if you're student a lot of companies are open to interviews and such, which makes it easier to connect and network.
Wow Loretta, this video was so inspiring. Your words were so moving and eye-opening. It really puts my opportunities or the “chances” I have had in perspective and made me realize how lucky I have been. I grew up in a naval base in Japan and as a child, I was taught to read, write, and speak Japanese, and Japanese culture and customs due to the strained and hostile relationship between the US and Japan during the 90s. I have always had an easy time speaking Japanese or learning new languages because I was exposed to multiple languages when I was young, but unfortunately I didn’t keep up with my studies. I am able to get around rural Japan with my broken Japanese and manage small talk but not graduate level Japanese. I was two courses away from completing a Japanese minor during my undergraduate. I have dictionaries and books but I never got around to actually studying. Watching this video helped me remember how I felt when I was learning and speaking Japanese for the first time. It helped me remember me as a little kid watching Japanese cable and singing along to the opening themes of Japanese children shows by reading the hiragana at the bottom. Thank you for reminding me of those memories!
You’re amazing, keep up the good work!
ロレッタさん、あなたは凄い、偉い、超前向き、努力家、ただただ尊敬します !!
Although I did not go through formal education when I was young, like you, Loretta, I developed an interest in studying Japanese (by self-study) even if I didn’t know yet what to do with it. Cut the long story short, opportunities really did present themselves later on and now I work here in Japan as an engineer. And even though I’m miles away from your level now, knowing that we share similar backgrounds (rigorous nihongo trainings, used it in workplace) inspires me to aim higher and keep on nurturing this skill. Thank you for sharing your story. ❤️
Loretta, thank you for this inspiring video and letting us get to know your history!
I've been very interested in learning Japanese for years now, but always put it off because I thought I didn't have access to learning opportunities and I knew I couldn't get very far just through self-study. But last summer, I finally started taking Japanese classes at a "Japanese School" that's hosted at a local Middle School on Saturdays. While most of the classes and events are for children, they also have adults-only Japanese Language classes starting with the very basics and continuing on for 5 years of increasing studies. This class has been life changing in what I thought was possible for me because I'm already 6 years post-college graduation. I've taken volunteer opportunities with the group that runs the school, as well as other Japanese groups in the area, and because of them I recently found out about an all-ages study abroad program in Japan! I'm not only working towards lining everything up to spend a month or two studying in this program, but I'm also going to apply to JET this fall! I'm very excited to see where it all leads me next. Getting past the fear of it being "too late" or "not enough" or "impossible", starting to learn a language I've always wanted to, and getting involved in my local Japanese community have all opened so many doors for me already. For anyone out there with similar dreams and fears, please go after them! It's never too late to start trying, and if you already know you want to start then the best time to start is NOW!! :]
こんにちは。パリに住んでいるものですがロックダウン中にロレッタさんの動画を見つけ全てみさせていただきました! 私は４９歳でパリに来て語学学校でフランス語を学びはじめました。現在は学校も終え働いており、在仏４年目ですがまだ聞き取れないことも多く、口から出るフランス語もたどたどしい。。私の一つの夢はフランス語を母国語レベルとまではいかないけど、理解し話せるようになりたい！と思っています。フランスを肌で感じるためにフランス語でコミュニケーションをとれる自分になりたいのです☺️ ロレッタさんがこんなに日本語を上手に話せるようになったのは、ものすごい努力をされたのだと思っています。私も頑張ります。フランスから応援しています！！😀
私は高校生のときアニメが好きになって自分でちょっと勉強してみた。で、大学に入ってから、２年後大学を休んで、その時、出身にある日本語学校で日本語の勉強を始めた。そこで2、3ヶ月くらい勉強した。
その後で、他の大学に編入した。その大学で、また日本語を勉強したけれど、前の日本語学校より先生はあまり日本語で話さなかった。それに、１週間に３時間しか勉強しなかった。
大学を卒業した後で、すぐ働いた。会社に入ったばかりなんですが、家族と一緒に関西へ旅行に行った。京都に姉の日本で留学している友達と知り合った。姉の友達は留学のことを話してくれた。そのおかげで、日本の大学院に入ってみようと思った。で、日本語の勉強を続いた。
国で日本語を勉強しながら、働いていた。日本語の練習は無くて、全然話せるようにならなかった。その理由で日本に日本語を勉強しに来た。
日本人並に日本語うまいですね！
アクセントやイントネーションも違和感ないので凄いです...！
Growing up in very impoverished Northeastern NC, I never had access to Japanese classes. We were lucky to have Spanish once a week in high school! But I knew I was super interested in languages so I chose to study French for the first time once I got to college-now I’m fluent in French, Portuguese, and working on learning Japanese! It’s crazy to look back and reflect on it. Very inspiring, Kemushi chan
This was such a wild video for me. I’m black and also from Virginia. I’ve always had a love for languages and other cultures. It was also wild to hear you grew up near Fairfax/Arlington cause I’m currently at GMU taking Japanese as one of my classes. I’ve heard GMU has a great study abroad program so I hope to take a semester at a university in Japan. Thank you so much for the video :)
Hey neighbor!!!!! 😍❤️ Its a small world, eh? Hope the classes aren't too brutal!
KemushiChan ロレッタ Hey! I’m definitely gonna study hard and watch more of your videos to get me through it!!!
Love all of this! I've been an on off language learner for most of my life. I did German for a bit, Spanish in high school, Chinese at some point, etc etc, but didn't really stick with any of them. I'm committed to Japanese now, as an adult, but I always wish I had been able to stick with language study consistently from much earlier in life. Knowing another language opens up entire worlds for anyone willing to put in the work!
I moved to Japan recently, and am already seeing improvements in my Japanese abilities, so I'm def looking forward to seeing how much progress I can make. Thanks for all of your videos and the work you put into them. You def inspire me to keep focusing on my studies! :-)
I stumbled across your channel today and I wanted to say thank you for inspiring me and others who want to learn Japanese. I hope that those schools in Virginia kept their Japanese programs on board. Classroom language learning experiences are so underrated, especially from passionate teachers who work hard to make learning fun and immersive for the students. I took Spanish in high school and college, and I really gained a lot from those experiences. I knew their all-Spanish speaking only classes were working when I started thinking in Spanish!
I am a self-study Japanese learner. I struggle with the speaking part since I don't have as many well-structured opportunities to talk in Japanese outside of video calling like iTalki and Tandem. Contrasting it with my Spanish-learning experiences, I realized what a blessing it was to have a group of people who knew just about the same amount of the language as me to practice with. Anyway, because I can practice my listening through watching your channel, you just now earned a sub who is bent on watching without subs. Haha.
To answer your question, my goals for beginning three months ago were four-fold. 1) I wanted to learn Japanese with my boyfriend who is 1/4 Japanese so we could visit his aunt and cousins there, and not need so much assistance to get around more rural areas. He decided to wait longer since work is stressful for him now, but I will eventually get him on board. 2) I just turned 30 and I want to prove to myself that it's not too late to start something new. 3) I was stuck in quarantine due to Covid, so I thought what a better way to explore the outside world right now than to learn a whole new language and culture? 4) Anime :)
Loretta, I just found this video and this is amazingly encouraging. We are around the same age and I'm also a Virginia girl (though I'm from southern VA).That is exciting and so relatable because it's rare to find other black women here who are into Japanese like I am.
I actually worked at W&M for a year and learned a little Chinese there but I had no idea they taught Japanese there! That's so exciting. I've been lazily studying Japanese on and off for about 15 years and I first came to it from anime but im in love with the culture of Japan. I speak German at an upper beginner level already but this is the encouragement I needed to buck up my japanese! Thanks!
I am all amazed at how you worded this. It definitely shows your passion, and i personally think that your story is very inspiring. I agree with you 100%. I wish I could too have taken my japanese studies more seriously early on when life was easy~ thank you for this video. Ill keep doing what I can!
Thank you for encouraging others to engage in something foreign to themselves, something different. For the first 25 years of my life I had no interest in Japan whatsoever, but at the age of 26 I started dating a man who was moving to Tokyo. I ended up moving with him. A very scary (in a good way) and different experience than I ever thought I had ever had. We stayed for a year and moved back to the US due to some ill family members. After 5 years we have decided to move back to Tokyo, so I am currently studying Japanese; regardless of how difficult it is, I adore it. Thank you so much for your message and for sharing your experience.
Truly inspirational story, Loretta. It's so interesting that your initial study abroad sparked something in you. It's led you on quite a journey. What's even more interesting is that your desire to keep learning never went away. With your Japanese you have another lens to see and communicate, through. It's going to be so interesting to see where this path leads you. Sky's the limit! 100% respect.
Thank you SO much for sharing your story, Loretta! What an inspiring lady you are! I grew up in South East Asia and had many Japanese friends at the international school I went to. I loved Japan and Japanese since that moment and told myself that one day I would study it at university. Well, when I came back to the UK there were no Jpse classes and no one was interested AT ALL. Undaunted, I continually scoured bookstores for Jpse language books and held on to them like they were gold. I was told at high school that, because I wasn't good at German and my French was okay but not great, that there'd be no point in me applying to read for a degree in Jpse (by the way, that's complete rubbish but I tended to accept what my teachers told me back then). I was quite devastated. So I went on and did something different for my degree, got a job, etc. Years and years passed. BUT - when I turned 34, I decided to reinvestigate. Lo and behold, I got a place to study Japanese on a postgraduate degree program in the best school in the UK!!!! Don't EVER give up, that's my motto. Chase your dream ALWAYS. xx
That little part towards the end where you encourage us to follow what we want to do, what we want to learn, as soon as it's possible for us was.. well.... so, so encouraging. Your tone throughout the video was seriously sweet and I felt reenergized by what you said. Thank you for sharing your experience and this video with us! Much love from Argentina
日本語すごい上手👏
うちも英語ちゃんと話せるように頑張る💪
あなたの日本語はとても上手です。私は中国の学生で、ロンドンで勉強していますが、今は日本語を勉強しています。言語を学ぶことは非常に興味深いことです。
I agree with you that how important to learn a new language! As a Chinese student in London, since I almost finish my study in English, I'm learning Japanese by myself recently. In Chinese, we call language like "a door of language": 一门语言，it means a language like a door, it could help you to open a new world.
Language is also like a history book. There are full of interesting vocabularies to tell you the past of the memories of this nation. Thank you for sharing so inspiring video! 日本語を勉強頑張る。ありがとうございます。
Such a lovely video!! I really needed this sort of inspiration today. I am currently working as an ALT in a public Japanese high school. Asides from test studying (for Kanken and JLPT), I don't utlize my Japanese as much as I should.
At one point, I developed a phobia of speaking Japanese to natives.
I feel completely drained and as if I am fighting an uphill battle. Even with a total of 8 years (4 from uni) under my belt, I feel as if my Japanese has gotten nowhere at all.
Maybe I should reshape my focus as to why I am in Japan. When I was first selected to work as an ALT in Japan, my goal was to just live there.
Four years later of doing ALT, even with this unforgettable experience, it is not my main focus.
Now that I am in Japan, and don't want to teach English, I am trying to figure out more options.
Sorry for rambling on. Good video!!
PS: I'm also from the DMV! :D
OMG. I cannot tell you how wonderful it is to hear your story of learning Japanese. Thank you so much! I am getting into Japanese myself, I am a high school student, and it is very encouraging to hear your story. I want to move to Japan at some point, and I just wanted to say THANK YOU.
私も最初はアニメが好きだから日本語に興味があって、大学で日本語を勉強するのはもう3年間になったんだけど、日本語で話すはまだまだだ。やっぱり経験がたりないのせいだよね。もっと友達と日本語で話たい😥 だが、使う文法が間違ってることがあったら、すごく恥ずかしい:(
日本語上手ですね❗頑張って❗
idk why i felt so emotional at the end.. but here is my language journey! Living in the persian gulf, knowing arabic can open many doors for you. I dont know why but at 13 i decided i wanted to transfer to a government school (which is alll in arabic) from my private school (Which was all english) but i am glad i did! I am fluent in arabic and have no communication problems. My job opportunities have increased, considering I speak 4 languages, japanese excluded. and right now i am taking japanese level 1 at uni and i plan to complete all levels and apply for japanese grad studies scholarship in the future! your video really motivated me to try harder at learning japanese. sometimes when i listen to you or other non japanese people speak japanese so fluently i begin to doubt myself but then i think about the time i thought i would never be able to sound native arabic speaker but i do now! Thanks for the motivation
ありがとうございます！今日からもっとがんばります！
NOVA & Fairfax County represent!! I had no idea you were from my county. Amazing. :)
Just wanted to say I stumbled upon your channel nearly 5 years ago when I started learning Japanese. I never stopped so thanks to your inspiration to learn, listening to your video with no subtitles is a breeze. Appreciate the uploads!
おもしろいときれいですね！ I am 25 and just started learning Japanese about 1 year ago. I strive to reach the level you have achieved! I dream to be a teacher in art and language. thank you for the great video.
日本語うますぎるし、めちゃめちゃ美人☺️💕
Listening to your stories and the way you speak so fluently gives me hope. I am not studying in any schools but teaching myself and have a teacher from italki weekly, I want to live in Japan one day
and not because of anime or grand fantasies. I'm in love with the history, culture and people of Japan. Seeing other people who are foreign but are living comfortably and speaking fluently makes me so happy. Thank you for your videos ! xx
You have no idea how much this video helps me! I've been learning Japanese for some time now (got my N2 certification last December, currently learning for N1), and watching this video really sparks my motivation to study harder since going to Japan is one of my dreams. I also uploaded 1 or 2 videos of myself learning Japanese, but I haven't uploaded anything for maybe a year, 色々迷っているからです。Maybe I'll start uploading again... I remember how fun it is to shoot and edit videos haha. 動画ありがとうございます！
すごく日本語が上手くて、違和感がないです！
私は日本語と日本文化などを学ぶポーランド人です。このチャンネルは凄くて、この発表に感動して、インスピレーションになったと思います。早いうちにやりたいことをやって、ブログを作っておきます！ありがとうございました！
Our paths have a lot of similarities, I studied Japanese at high school from 2003, and it was the turning point of my life that culminated in me moving to Japan in 2016. Your Japanese is one of the best I’ve heard, as you are able to express your logic with clarity and also maintain a sense of authenticity rather than putting on a “mask” personality or completely changing the voice as some other language learners do when they are (probably) not yet quite comfortable with the language. I also love how you recognize that there is much to improve even though you have great fluency, I am probably what others would call “fluent” and use Japanese every day in the workplace, but like you, its a case of 日々精進！
Wow i had no idea you were from NOVA or did marching band! I grew up in the Virginia Beach area and did marching band as well. I also had no idea the NOVA schools taught multiple languages.
I agree with you about the importance of experiencing a language at an early age. The schools in my area offered French and Spanish in 6th grade but that was the earliest you could take a language in public school. Having these opportunities are so important bc learning another language exposes you to so much more in life. I started Japanese my sophomore year and then went abroad and now I'm moving there in August to work and I know that wouldn't have happened if I wasn't exposed to Japanese. Like you I was first interested in Japanese bc of anime, but there's so much more that the language can introduce me to. Thanks for making this video!.
I agree with you. I live in Prince William County which is across the river from Fairfax County and one of the things that I've learned by living here is that this is a big world; not everybody is like "you" and "you" is not like everybody. I took German for two years in college because I needed the elected to graduate but when I went to Germany to live, I was so happy that I was able to communicate with the people there. The same is true when you learn Japanese or Korean or Hindi or French. If you want to do something very simple like take a bus someplace, do not expect the bus driver to flip out the English dictionary. If you want to live in the world of the people, you going to have to learn how to get along with other people. If you want to stay locked in at home and never go to the store or never go out for a snack, you still to communicate with other people. Should we all be somewhat multilingual - we most certainly should be. It just seems to make sense!
Your language skills are so fluent and amazing. Seriously. I always wished I would have spent more time on foreign language when I was in high school, but I'm trying now. I've studied Japanese on and off for close to ten years but I'm still very basic. I can't form more than one or two basic sentences at a time, and my reading skills are below average. My high school only offered two languages: German and Spanish. I wish more places would consider offering more Asian languages like Chinese, Japanese, and Korean, as they're very important (I think.) I'm focusing on German right now, but I don't even know where to BEGIN when it comes to "studying" so it has been a struggle.
i just started formally learning japanese a few months ago and i have high aspirations to go to japan, so thank you for this video! it inspired me to really study hard so that i may get closer to my goal
With regards to languages getting excluded from curriculums... that's also what happened to my former secondary school (in Germany). When I went there in the 2000s I already felt sorry for a very nice lady who was a qualified Italian language teacher (plus one other subject) but could only teach Italian as an optional language club, never as a class.
My year was actually the last year who could choose to study Ancient Latin in school, the next reform made it impossible for STEM-focused schools to "go too much into depth" with teaching languages. =/
We have the same history of wanting to learn Japanese because of anime when I was a kid. Im just envious of you because you got to formally study it in high school. But your words in the near end of the video inspired me to continue practicing and study it even more in the future. I hope i can work in Japan as well. 今日から、もっと頑張ります！ありがとうございましたケムシちゃん🙇🏻
Loretta, you're such an inspiration and wish I would have seen a video like this when I was growing up. I am and would have been so inspired to be much more serious about my language studies and considered making a job out of them. I've been studying foreign languages since I was 14 (now on my 7th one). Though unlike you, I have only intermediate fluency in 2 (Spanish, Russian). You're fluency is really remarkable. I hope whatever the future brings you is wonderful.
I'm starting a Japanese degree at uni this September and even after self-studying, going to Japan for 3 months, loving the language and the culture, and having a beautiful time, I still find myself doubting my choice. Maybe just because people question it so much because it's way more unusual to study here. I find myself worrying about jobs and how useful Japanese would really be for my future.
This video helped calm my anxieties just a bit. So I guess I just wanted to say thank you, Loretta.
I dunno, does anyone else feel like this?
Hi Loretta~
For some reason, this video really helped me re-evaluate my language journey too! Since I grew up in the UK and then Yemen, I was able to pick up Arabic at a very young age (which is the only reason I speak it decently now). At 13, I was able to begin learning Spanish at school, as well as studying Japanese properly with my tutor from italki. At the moment, I'm working towards 4 language GCSEs (kinda like the SATs in America) for French, Arabic, Japanese and Spanish. It has been really difficult (there's listening, reading, writing and speaking exams for each) but this video helped me realise that I'm doing it to achieve a goal.
So, thank you :)
Hi! I'm fifteen and began learning Japanese this year. I moved to Japan this year because of my dad's job and you're so inspiring! I aspire to become fluent like you! Thank you for sharing your story
this video really made me realise how valuable exchange can be though, at the beginning of my exchange i would never have imagined being able to watch a video like this of yours without subtitles but now 8 months through my exchange i could understand everything without subtitles (minus a few special vocab) buT STILL! this really motivated me to keep going, and to even start focusing on my korean! thanks always loretta
Listening to your story was so heartwarming! I'm studying my 4th course of Japanese at me home university, but after visiting Japan through a program for free for two weeks at the end of last year, I knew I had to go and study there. I had my doubts before, especially since I have a boyfriend back at home, but I was determined and I applied. In the coming week I should get my answer whether I'm accepted to the fall semester or not. If I study well there, I'll get to stay for the spring semester as well, which I'll be working hard toward! I can't wait for the application results to come in! Working between my home country and Japan is a dream of mine as well.
I just found your channel the other day, but I've been loving it!
Awesome sisterLoretta-sama; continue the good work
everytime I watch your videos I get so happy and motivated to continue learning, I don't have the opportunity to learn Japanese in school so that's why I teach myself but it's a pain in the ass. But watching you gets me so motivated, you're Japanese is so amazing!!
I'm also from NOVA and going through FCPS! You're a huge inspiration to me and it's really cool that we're from the same area! I feel like if you could achieve fluency, then I can do it too! Keep being awesome!
I started learning a month ago after a few months of being obsessed with anime at the age of 21.
As important as getting a headstart is, I also want to remind people that they can start late too, even if it feels like they're past the age for learning new things
Hi! I've just discovered your channel while looking for some touristic recommendations for my second trip to Japan and I'm glad I watched this video. As a (newly!) graduated student in Chinese studies, who went to uni in China and slowly starting to learn Japanese, I can say that I am amazed by what you have accomplished so far! You're truly inspiring and I wish to have the same opportunities in the future in China or in Japan !
Somewhere around 13-14yrs old I tried to teach myself Japanese online but when I went into High School I could only choose between Spanish, Latin, or French. So, I chose French & have kept with it because of how much time I've put into the language already and how much I love the language, but my desire to learn Japanese has always been so much greater and also so much more difficult to figure out. Now I'm 25 (still learning French) but as an adult you lose access to quite a lot of resources, at least for free & having to work and whatever can be added conflicts. I wish I could spend everyday just learning without having to struggle with scheduling and paying so much and whatever else. It's tough for sure
Thank you..so informative and inspiring..I hope the public schools keep teaching for the sake of future generations.With Trump such skills are even more important... ..Your gonna be a fantastic Mother when the time comes...What insight, strength and courage..your husband is very luck...wishing you all the best.
I’m from northern virginia too! I am half Japanese and half Black (Blasian!!) I do not speak Japanese, but I am currently trying to learn it. I wish my school taught it, but sadly I live in a county where they don’t (I’m self teaching myself.) I took French in school, but after four years, I want to pursue a language that I have more interest in. Watching your videos is good motivation for me!
Loretta!! I used to watch your videos religiously close to 9 years ago. I lost my old account and with the old account went all of my channels :O
I'm so happy to see you doing so well and still loving every moment of it all
What a wonderful story. Thank you for sharing it with us all. ❤️❤️❤️
Congratulations on almost 100K, Loretta! Very well deserved!!
It's wonderful to see someone making videos exposing viewers to more advanced Japanese from more of an educational perspective. I can tell that you genuinely value the time, effort and energy it takes to learn Japanese (or any language, for that matter) because you make content that respects and challenges viewers rather than playing up to "mass appeal" and producing solely English content. Your presentation is also very authentic in your use of visual cues to provide context when speaking and so perfectly embodies the respect you have for the Japanese language, Japanese culture and the experiences of anyone learning a second (third, fourth, etc.) language.
6 years ago I completed my specialist Japanese language studies, on a scholarship but chose to forgo my passion in lieu of working in my home country (Australia) to support my extended family. Like you, I would never have had the opportunity to learn a language if it wasn't for the scholarships I received. For the last 6 years I have felt as though I abandoned my passion by choosing to shift my focus away from completing my Doctorate in Japanese and it's something I've greatly regretted. Now, I've decided to return to the language and I am so glad to see role models like yourself, championing the study of Japanese - particularly at a time when many western schools seem to be removing it from the language curriculum.
Once again, congratulations on your incredible achievements!
You are so very deserving and I wish you boundless ongoing success and happiness in all of your endeavours!
-Isha
You are my inspiration. I'm an italian 16-year-old girl and I started studying japanese last year (even though I had already learned hiragana,katakana and some words/sentences). I'm still a beginner but I know I'm going to study japanese at university when I grow up,I'd like to become a translator one day. I hope I'll make my dreams come true. You're absolutely amazing,though! Keep going and never give up!
ずっと前から見てました。ちょこちょこと他のチャンネルにも顔を出されてますよね。
ロレッタさんの、これまでのことを押し付けるのでもなく、経験としての、なんのてらいもないコメントに感動です。
Thank you so very much for your Nihongo "testamonial" ! Your journey is an inspiration for me to continue my own personal embracing of this beautiful culture ! I am US born of german parents with german as my first language ;however, I have lived in Canada for 50 years now! My Japanese is coming along quickly because all of the Nihongo vowels and consonants are pronounced the same in German ! I will study harder than ever now ! Blessings ! Nicolaus " Nikku ! Arigato gozaimasta !!!
詳しい話ありがとうございます！日本語能力がすごいです。羨ましいです。Lorettaがとても努力しましたね。
私はすでに７年間日本語を学んでいますが、Lorettaのレベルと全く違います。Lorettaみたいに頑張ります!
I am nearly in tears watching this video! My young kids go to a Japanese immersion school, they both started in Kindergarten. People always ask me why, and my generic response is that I want them to learn something new and to give them more opportunities. You're video has explained the 'why' perfectly! Thank you so very much. I cannot wait to show my girls your videos!!!
Loretta I agree with you 100% when you speak of learning about a new culture. Thank you for sharing your story. My earliest encounter with Japanese was during elementary school (besides growing up watching sailor moon). I started with Anime (Inu-yasha 5th grade) from there my interest grew till later in middle school (8th grade) a friend introduced me to Japanese Rock/Pop it opened my eyes to a whole new world. Back then I wasn't serious about learning Japanese but I watched things like dramas,anime, t.v shows ect. Then in high school (9th grade, 2007) I was introduced to Korean Pop (K-pop) another new cultural experience. Neither language was offered in HS
As I got older I faced a difficult question Did I want to learn Japanese or Korean? since I was so involved in both cultures.
I haven't formally studied either in a school setting but I can understand some Korean & Japanese when I hear it, korean more so (even though i can't read the writing or speak it good).
I'm currently in university (I'm 25) I really want to take a language class with my current interest I'll probably take Korean but
Who knows I may still want to take Japanese in the future.
One thing I can say is I wish I would have started earlier w/ languages since I've been in both cultures for about 10 years
I WISH I had started japanese at a younger age, but unfortunately they didn't have those classes at my school in MN. So I had to start self teaching myself at 25, now I'm 27 and I've realized that I want to use Japanese in my everyday life, but sometimes I just feel so discouraged because I think I'm starting too late. I want to go back to school I just wish it wasn't so expensive! This video is just what I needed. I'm sure I can find some scholarships. ロレッタさん本当にありがとうございます❢
Good luck with that! Im self teaching myself as well which is basically imo sucks but I have no choice since here in Hungary theres like no schools which supports Japanese courses at my age(17). Also Im going to visit Japan for 2 weeks in November and Im hella scared about it since hearin a speech like this makes me confused and unable to understand things. However I dont want to use English in Japan so I got 2 rough months to get in the shape. Anyways Im sure u will be fine man B-)
I'm just starting at 37. As long as you're alive it's never too late. . .
@@EscapeRouteMedia I got ya beat...I'm 47 & just started learning. Definitely never too old to learn something new. I didn't start for a career change but simply because I love Japan!
I started Chinese (Mandarin) at 25 and I am 35 today. Just started self-teaching Japanese, so it’s never too late. Of course knowing Chinese characters makes Japanese vocabulary a LITTLE bit easier for me to learn, but not by much!!!
Loretta さんの話を聞いてからちょっと安心できる。でも、高校時代に日本語を学習するべきだった！じゃーありがとう
Hi Loretta! I really enjoyed listening to your experiences! I was even more fortunate to have my middle school offer students foreign languages and even band class- to show how versatile schools can be! I started to learn Spanish then, but only took it more seriously in high school when I surrounded myself with Spanish-speaking people. I love this languages and although I’m not majoring in it, working as a nutritionist in the US benefits from knowing a foreign language, especially Spanish. My parents are Chinese and I wish they taught me formal Chinese phrases when I was very young, but it doesn’t matter now. Now I’m
Inspired on my own to learn Mandarin, Cantonese, and Toisanese.
Thanks for being an inspiration! I look forward to your future videos!
your fluency is astounding, I managed to understand some of what you spoke, but you speak really fast! I've been studying japanese for some time now, and I want to go to japan to get a masters degree once I graduate from my engineering program, seeing someone else who's doing something similar is really encouraging (and who has reached that level of fluency, seriously, you are incredible)
I started taking Japanese in college because my high school didnt offer it, but it's my major now and I would love to study abroad and hopefully live in Japan after college! I have a lot of Japanese friends because my family hosted students who traveled abroad from Japan and they are extremely encouraging! As a kid I never thought I'd be a language major but im so glad I picked it!
韓国人ですけど、日本語は凄く難しい言語だと思う、でも努力すればいつか上達に成れるんだろと思って毎日頑張って勉強していますね
日本語上手いねぇ。。しかし、上達に成れるんじゃなくて「上達する」ですよ。それから、「流暢に成れる」も言えます。
椰子刺し武蔵ー ありがとうございます
もううまいやん
もう上手👍✨